Minority petitions CHRAJ over alleged secret recruitment into security services

The Minority in Parliament has petitioned the Commission of Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to investigate alleged secret recruitment into various security agencies.

The services are the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), Ghana Police Service (GPS), Ghana Prisons Service and the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC).

This follows reports of a planned recruitment of 11,000 personnel from a backlog of applicants over the years.

In the petition dated July 16, 2024, the Minority said the intended and purported recruitments by the GIS, GNFS, GPS, Prisons and NACOC violate Articles 23 and 296(a) (b) of the Constitution and same amount to flagrant abuse of power, unfair and unreasonable treatment, and above all, arbitrary exercise of power.

“We further contend that the instant complaint invokes CHRAJ’s exclusive mandate as the Ombudsman, and hereby humbly petition that, in order to meet the constitutional and statutory threshold as alluded to above, the intended and purported recruitments by the GPS, GIS, GNFS, Prisons and NACOC, be investigated by CHRAJ to ascertain the extent of transparency of the recruitments,” it said.

It also urged CHRAJ to ensure that all recruitment advertisements for public services are published in national newspapers to promote transparency.

The Minority said it remains resolute and vigilant and will employ every legitimate means to stop this “secret, illegal, and unfair recruitment”.

Meanwhile, the Interior Minister, Henry Quartey, has denied claims that the ministry is undertaking a covet recruitment into the Ghana Police Service and other security agencies.

Speaking to the media, the Interior Minister said the security services are only engaging people from a backlog of applicants over the years to ascertain their eligibility.

“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 allow 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,” the Interior Minister said.

He further clarified that it is not the responsibility of the ministry to recruit but the security agencies themselves.