The Minority in Parliament has accused the Ministry of Interior of using the limited security services recruitment as a cover-up to enlist “party vigilantes and goons” into the services to do their bidding in the upcoming elections.
According to the Caucus, there is no backlog from the previous recruitment exercise as claimed in the various notices put out by the Ghana Police Service (GPS), the Ghana National fire Service (GNFS) and the Ghana Prisons Service.
A statement released by James Agalga- one of the three lawmakers who petitioned the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) last week accusing the government of secretly enlisting people into the various state security agencies- questioned the move by the Ministry.
“Whilst CHRAJ is seized with the minority’s petition, it came to us as a surprise to learn that the security services under the ministry of the Interior namely; the police service, Fire Service, Prisons Service and Immigration Service are bent on restricting the 2024 recruitment to persons who only applied in 2021, at a time when the legality of recruiting from a purported backlog is being questioned before CHRAJ.”
The Ranking Member on the Defence and Interior Committee of Parliament added, “The minority is of the firm belief that the recalcitrant behaviour of the NPP government on its quest to recruit personnel from a non-existent backlog is its ploy to recruit party vigilantes and goons into the security services purposely to help them achieve a favourable outcome in the this year’s elections which is only a few months away.”
According to him, the move has the propensity to stir jeopardy in the December elections.
He has therefore called on the Peace Council, foreign partners and civil society groups to intervene and add their voice to the condemnation.
Recruitment
The Ghana Police Service, Ghana Prisons Service, and Ghana Immigration Service opened limited recruitment on August 7, 2024.
The notices published in the Daily Graphic noted that the exercise is open to only 2021 applicants and will close on August 13, 2024.
Source:opemsuo.com