Employment slots in GES being sold for GH¢20k – Former U/E Regional Minister laments

A former Upper East Regional Minister, Prof Ephraim Nsoh Avea, has bemoaned the unbridled corruption in the recruitment of persons into Ghana Education (GES) and other public agencies such as the security services.

Prof Avea, a retired academic respected and staunch member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) alleged, in an interview with Bolgatanga-based Dreamz FM recently, that employment into GES, for instance, comes with a bribe of 20, 000 while security services demand payment before recruitment.

“They are selling GES appointments. It is very common. If you pay 15,000 and you’ll be given a job. The other time, my student in Kumasi, who has completed, and he is there, called me and said they [GES officials] said he should pay 20,000.So if I could help him.

"I said first of all it is my policy not to pay for employment, so I have never helped somebody to pay. My own brother’s son finally had to find money and pay 7,000 himself,” Prof Avea said.

He lamented that the complicity of persons who should tackle the menace has inadvertently normalized the nation-wrecking acts.

“Ordinarily, we should be arresting those people but the policeman himself is paying for his son. All security services from the fire service, Immigration, army and all that… What I knew during our time, they give the district directors the green light to recruit, interviews are done at the district level. But now everything, even nursing, you want placement, you go and pay for them to place you,” he lamented.

There have been similar allegations of persons paying huge bribes before being recruited into the public sector. But nothing seems to be done about the situation.