The Minister of Interior, Henry Quartey, is warning against labelling potential recruits into the nation’s security agencies as thugs and party loyalists.
Such tags, he said, could lead to severe negative outcomes for the country.
“We must avoid attributing the eligibility of citizens who meet recruitment criteria to being party loyalists or thugs. This direction could plunge our country into insecurity,” he warned.
Addressing the alleged planned recruitment of 11,000 individuals into the security agencies on Tuesday, July 16 in Parliament, Henry Quartey stressed that the numbers being quoted in the media are inaccurate.
He explained the recruitment process and the confusion surrounding the supposed backlog of applicants.
According to him, all applicants who were issued letters by the Ghana Police Service as having met the eligibility criteria could be due to inaccuracies in the information they provided.
All these applicants, he said, must still pass through rigorous verification processes, including checks on their date of birth, birth certificates, and other credentials.
He said, “When the police say a backlog has been cleared, it does not mean there aren’t qualified Ghanaians waiting to be processed. The term ‘backlog’ refers to those with initial qualification papers.”
He argued that the security agencies cannot continue to sell forms knowing the eligible number may be far less than those applying.
“We are giving opportunities to those who have already obtained forms to complete the process as Ghanaians,” he said adding that this would eliminate the activities of fraudsters who use the recruitment process to scam people.
Henry Quartey, however, emphasized that the Ministry of Interior does not conduct recruitment for any security agency and stressed that they are only policy drivers.
He said, “Security agencies handle recruitment based on criteria and approvals from the Ministry of Finance. Only after approval do they engage recruits.”
The Interior Minister warned the public about scams and extortions related to the annual recruitment and stressed that this year’s exercise has not started yet.
Any person paying money to secure a spot, he said, does so at their own risk adding, “Selling recruitment spots is a criminal offence. Victims should report to the nearest police station for action against such offenders.”
Hon. Henry Quartey urged vigilance and adherence to proper procedures, emphasizing the integrity and transparency of the recruitment process to maintain national security.