National Service Secretariat
A young Ghanaian man, (name withheld), has reached out to YEN.com.gh to allege massive fraud within the national service scheme.
In an email sent to us, the young man, whose name we are withholding, detailed how he was contacted by a man who claimed to be from the National Service Secretariat.
He said the man told him he could arrange for him to get paid national service allowance every month without him having to do any work.
He said to his shock, the man did the arrangement and he began getting national service sent to his Ezwich account in January.
He said he emailed the NSS, alerting them to a potential crime within their organisation, but they did not respond to his email.
He said he also briefed the police and EOCO on the crime to get them to arrest the perpetrators, but no progress has been made on that front.
This, he said, prompted him to reach out to YEN.com.gh with his story.
Read his full email below:
UNABATED CORRUPTION AT NSS AND THE PUBLIC PURSE: A “CITIZEN’S” ENCOUNTER.
I am forced to come out on National Service Scheme (NSS) fraud/theft because in my view, the structures put in place to fight graft do not show that needed commitment and enthusiasm to the delivery of their mandate as outlined in the constitution.
Apart from my personal values, the call by the president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo, during his inaugural speech for all to be “citizens and not spectators” and also offer to protect the public purse by his government inspires me. This, to me, ought to be a clarion call to all Ghanaians everywhere to a national duty.
My inability to undertake the mandatory National Service after school and even when the opportunity presented itself later on is one that remains a scar on my conscience and I seek to address that now. But In the past, as it is now, people are just on hand to take advantage of loopholes and cheat the system.
Earlier in the month of January 2017, I had a call from a young man who addressed himself as a national service staff. He asked if I was undertaking my national Service. I was evasive since I didn’t know who he actually was and his intentions. He then calmed me down and offered to help me do it and have my certificate. My citizen “antenna” was then activated and remembered to have him on tape so I feigned not hearing and made him restate his mission.
As the interaction continued, he appeared to be in the inner circles of the NSS system database. His objective was simple: to facilitate process for me to get my allowance and certificate without undertaking my National Service at all through a dubious means and share the monthly allowance. I didn’t give him a definite answer but told him I would get back to him.
The modus operandi as played out from further interactions was to carry the corrupt deal through my earlier released posting details. According to him, he had been assigned five people by his “boss”, including myself for the deal. To him, the National service was all about the money and certificate and reminded me that the “allawa” was going to be GH 599.00!
There was another call from him a week, or so after several attempts failed to reach me. To my surprise, according him, he had gone ahead to process into the system my January allowance. I then asked him with fury why he did that and his response suggested he knew I would gladly accept the offer since other colleagues on his radar had welcomed the deal. There have been several calls thereafter and interactions mind boggling.
As it turned out, to cut a long story short, either by some external machination or divine intervention, my Nnational service program never happened even though I requested them to allow me to undertake it in my current work place after undergoing due process and being assured.
As I write, payments are being deposited in my Eswitch account on monthly basis without me rendering the service! I constantly get calls and on one account a text message reminder from this individual alerting me of payment hitting my account. I have also checked always with the banks taking chits as proof of payments.
To help further in the investigations, sometime in the month of January, I sent a mail to National service Scheme corporate email (info@nss.gov.gh) informing them about a fraud case, inviting them to show interest but not even an acknowledgement letter of receipt came from them.
As a lawful citizen, I made a formal report to the Dansoman Police through a police CID to investigate the case. I visited her and made my statement. She made me call the person in question. The interaction was interesting. But there was no urgency and enthusiasm to pursue the case.
I drew closer to a big private Radio/TV media house. As I narrated my case for them to carry the matter, their preliminary response was that it maybe be a scam so did not see the need to give it attention. That, perhaps, was good because somehow I also wanted to avoid the media brouhaha associated with such cases; I was not prepared for media interviews which often lose the thrust of the matter.
With initial difficulty reaching the Economic and Organised Crimes Office (EOCO) via their land line contact on their website which appears not to work as always gave a busy tone, I sent emails and was finally responded to. I was invited by the Chief Executive, k .k Amoah and after brief interactions, gave me an investigator to help with the investigations. But follow ups as far as the case is concern is slow or nonexistent.
Ghana! As I speak, I continuously receive calls from this gentleman for his share of the booty, something I cannot accede to. Maybe after this publication, some commitment will be afforded the case from people paid to do just that.
A proud Citizen of Ghana
Thanks
