There is no ongoing security recruitment into security services – Interior minister insists

The Minister for Interior, Henry Quartey, has refuted allegations that his outfit is undertaking a secret recruitment exercise into the country’s security services.

The Minority Caucus of Ghana’s Parliament has for weeks claimed that the government has been secretly recruiting people into the security services without any advertisement.

The Member of Parliament for Wa West, Peter Lanchene Toobu, according to classfmonline.com, raised concerns about alleged irregularities in the recruitment process of security personnel, describing the situation as "state capture."

The Wa West legislator expressed frustration with the lack of transparency in the recruitment process, criticising the Ministry of Interior for interfering in administrative matters that should be managed by the heads of security agencies.

He also questioned the government’s definition of "backlog”, suggesting it was an euphemism for applicants who were not selected in previous recruitment exercises.

Reacting to these allegations, Henry Quartey reiterated his previous response that there is no ongoing recruitment into the security services.

He explained that the security services have decided not to sell forms but to give persons who bought forms and started the recruitment process in the past the opportunity to get into the services, 3news.com reports.

“We are saying that we continue to advertise and sell forms to the youth of this country knowing that the number of people that will be eligible may not even be 2000 and we continue to sell forms to them.

“This is why we are saying that let us give the opportunity to those who have these forms so that they can go through the process as Ghanaians, if they are able to meet the eligibility criteria then they are recruited,” he is quoted to have said.

The minister also clarified that his outfit does not engage in recruitment for the security services.

He said that the services do their own recruitment and the ministry is there for the implementation of the government policies for the security sector.

“So, our position is to say clearly that we have not started recruitment. I have heard a lot of things out there but for the record, the Ministry of the Interior does not do recruitment, we are policy drivers.

“It is the security and intelligence agencies that do the recruitment and they have criteria for people to meet and the number of people they need, then the Ministry of Finance will give the approval. Once that approval is given, they go through the process and then they engage.”

BAI/NOQ

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