The National Identification Authority’s non-citizen card for $120 is a fraud

A great deal of controversy has surrounded the National Identification Authority. Disgruntled Ghanaians have been monitoring the administration in charge of issuing identification cards for both Ghanaians and non-Ghanaians, accusing them of corruption and malpractices, including the issuance of identification cards to communities in NPP strongholds while purposefully torturing the NDC stronghold by refusing to fully assist them in obtaining their cards.

Despite the National Identification Authority's denial of the claim, it is widely believed that identification card issuers and the head of the Electoral Commission, Jean Mensa, worked together to prevent the establishment of NDC strongholds to obtain their cards, for the ruling party to win the upcoming

elections in 2024.

However, the Ghanaian media has not addressed or reported on the issuance of non-citizen cards for foreigners for $120 with only one-year validity.

Since the Akufo Addo administration only cares about making money from both Ghanaians and foreigners, it cannot deliver better services. This is why the government has failed.

The NPP government was receiving $150 each from foreigners at the Kotoka International Airport before the ban on freedom of movement was lifted once COVID was deemed to no longer pose a threat to visitors throughout the

world, and up until this point, nobody is sure where the money went.

A president who doesn't consider the welfare and comfort of the populace will undoubtedly lack the expertise to make conditions comfortable for foreigners as well. The National Identification Authority issuing cards to non-citizens for $120, or its equivalent in Cedis, with a one-year expiration date, disturbs

and outrages me.

It is uncommon to provide an identification card to a foreigner for that price with only a year's validity in developing nations, let alone developed ones. This is robbery. To earn a profit, the Ghanaian government charges $120 for the issuance of non-citizen cards with a one-year expiration date. Since I've been a resident in Belgium for more than 20 years, I can attest that even the five-year documents for foreigners don't even come close to costing half as much as $120.

Whose orders does the National Identification Authority follow when charging foreigners so much money for identification cards with a 12-month lifespan? Nana Akufo Addo, that's not acceptable.

Why can't they extend it to at least two years if the Ghanaian government is unwilling to offer them five years in exchange for the money taken from them? Akufo Addo's administration is lagging in progress, yet it taxes both Ghanaians and foreigners more than any other government in the nation's political

history.

Unfortunately, no one is aware of where all the money goes. On June 15, 2023, I visited the NIA's offices and was astounded by the volume of overseas applicants.

I was able to speak to a white lady and a Ghanaian-American and both spoke critically against the one- year validity of the card. According to the white lady, sometimes, her card expires while she is not in the country and when she comes, she has to come and renew it before she can get access to everything,

including her money at the bank. The Ghanaian-American told me he has renewed his card thrice and even despite only one year, the renewal is also expensive.

I was questioned frequently throughout my investigations with the warnings that the government does not want any journalists on their property and that no photographs are permitted. I questioned, "What is the government trying to conceal from the public by ordering the NIA security to comply with?"

Many regimes have included criminal activity, but this specific NPP administration has spread it like a cancerous disease because they believe it is essential to their continued existence in the political system.

I can’t write my article without being able to show that I had visited the National Identification Authority's offices, even though I was not permitted to take photos there. As soon as I exited the building, I started searching for a vantage point from which I might sneak a shot, and I was successful.

The president, Nana Akufo-Addo, should start to realize that when the ambassadors who represent their countries in the country are dissatisfied, they have the right to act without his knowledge and to remove him from office. The president shouldn't underestimate them; I don't need to mention that.

I commented that Akufo-Addo is acting immaturely because he can’t coerce the public into supporting the NPP candidate, therefore; the NPP would lose in Assin North when he advised Ghanaians not to vote for Quayson, who is destined to go to prison. That has also happened. I don’t know when this president will ever take me seriously, I did my best to show him the right way, but I am often viewed as a foe.