The Minister for the Interior and Member of Parliament (MP) for Asawase, Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka, has disclosed that his Ministry is preparing an Information Paper for Cabinet on the introduction of mandatory drug testing for people seeking employment in the public sector.
According to Mr Muntaka, the proposal is intended to ensure that people recruited into the public service are not already struggling with drug-related problems.
He said the move follows concerns identified during this year’s security services recruitment exercise, where more than 100,000 applicants underwent medical examinations. Drug testing and mental health assessments were included in addition to the traditional physical and laboratory examinations.
More than 4,000 applicants reportedly tested positive for drugs, while about 2,000 others were disqualified on mental health grounds.
“Very soon, the Ministry of the Interior will be taking an Information Paper to Cabinet, and one of the things that we are going to do is to ensure that nobody gets into public service until we do a drug test on you,” he said.
Mr Muntaka said the results demonstrated the need for stronger measures to address drug abuse among prospective public servants.
“It is shocking for us this year’s recruitment exercise. When we decided to test for drugs, over 6,000 people were disqualified because they tested positive for one drug or the other,” he said.
“If we hadn’t done this, many of them would have gotten through into the civil service,” he added.
He acknowledged that drug-related challenges also affect some personnel already serving in the security services and said government was taking steps to assist affected officers.
“Some of the officers that we have in the service, some already are into drugs. And we are taking steps to help them to get out of it,” he said.
“We are not going to be allowing new people to be trained when we know you are already on drugs,” Mr Muntaka stated.
Warning Over Drug Abuse in Schools
The Interior Minister also raised concerns about the growing presence of drugs in secondary schools, particularly the sale of tramadol and other harmful substances among students.
“Today, in some of our secondary schools, some of the students themselves are hiding to sell tramadol and other harmful drugs to their colleagues,” he said.
“This is why we are calling on the headmaster to pay attention to these students and what they are doing.”
He warned students against peer pressure and claims that drugs such as Indian hemp and tramadol could improve academic performance.
“Drugs destroy you forever,” he cautioned.
“What is the use of that exam if by the time you get A-AAAA, you have destroyed yourself?” he asked.
Mr Muntaka urged students facing poverty and other socioeconomic difficulties not to lose hope or resort to drug abuse, stressing that addiction could have serious consequences for their mental health and future.
“Your future is way ahead of you. Your future is much brighter ahead of you,” he told the students.
Muntaka Shares Personal Experience
Mr Muntaka also shared his personal story to encourage students to remain focused on their education despite financial difficulties.
He recalled growing up as the son of a ‘kooko’ seller and helping his mother sell bananas, groundnuts and mangoes on the streets of Kumasi.
“I am a ‘koko’ [porridge] seller’s son. My mother was selling ‘koko’ in our home,” he said.
He said his background made it difficult to imagine that he would eventually become a Member of Parliament.
“If somebody had told me 40 years ago that one day I could even become a Member of Parliament, I would never have believed it,” he said.
Mr Muntaka also encouraged students not to allow poverty or family responsibilities to make them believe that their future was limited.
“Don’t let the challenge of today- because your mother is poor, because when you go home, you have to go and help your parents to do one thing or the other- you think that hope is lost. No. There cannot be lost hope,” he said.
New Classroom Block
Mr Muntaka made the remarks during the official opening of a newly constructed six-unit first-floor classroom block at Sakafiya Islamic Senior High School.
The facility includes an office and a six-seater water closet and is expected to improve the teaching and learning environment.
He said investments in educational infrastructure were aimed at helping young people become responsible citizens and contribute to national development.
“Students, all these things that we are doing, all this investment that we are putting in, it is for you to be better citizens than us,” he said.
He urged the students to make good use of the new facilities, stay focused on their education and work towards building a better future for themselves and the country.
