The Minority in Parliament has called on the government to immediately halt the planned recruitment of some 11,000 personnel into the security services, citing irregularities and a lack of transparency in the process.

At a press conference in Parliament earlier today, Deputy Minority Leader Mr. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah expressed concerns that the recruitment exercise was being conducted clandestinely, without advertising for qualified applicants to apply.

According to the Minority, the government plans to recruit 3,000 personnel into the Ghana Immigration Service, 4,000 into the Ghana Police Service, 2,000 into the Ghana National Fire Service, 1,500 into the Ghana Prisons Service, and 500 into the Narcotics Control Commission. 

However, instead of advertising for applications, the government claims it is clearing a backlog of previous applicants.

The Minority has raised several concerns about this approach, questioning how it ensures that individuals who may have exceeded the cut-off age for recruitment or developed health-related issues are not recruited into the security services. 

Mr Buah also pointed out that there was no backlog of applicants to be cleared, citing a press release by the Police Headquarters in July 2023, which announced the conclusion of its recruitment process for the 2021-2022 period.

The Minority is calling on the Minister of Interior to desist from this opaque and irregular recruitment process and to instead subject any planned recruitment into the security services to transparent and established procedures.

They are also demanding that any attempt to recruit personnel into the security agencies under the Ministry of Interior be preceded by an advertisement clearly spelling out the eligibility criteria.

The Minority believes that all Ghanaians deserve a fair and equal opportunity for employment into state institutions.