The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has announced measures taken by government to curb acts of corruption and mistreatment at the various Passport Application Centres in the country.
The announcement comes days after the Foreign Affairs Minister’s outburst over pervasive extortion and other corruption-relates activities at the Passport Office.
The Minister, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, who had visited the Passport Office in Accra, expressed displeasure at the conduct of the officials there, who she said, connive with middlemen also known as ‘goro boys’ to extort monies from applicants.
As an instant measure to curb the canker, Madam Botchwey instructed officials on secondment who had overstayed their welcome to return to their mother institutions.
She also indicated that a probe was ongoing to fish out those involved in the acts of extortion.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has since announced a raft of measures being implemented to deal with the issue.
In a statement issued by the Ministry yesterday, it urged applicants to report any form of extortion or mistreatment they suffer at the Passport Office through hotlines it has released.
The statement indicated that officials at the various application centres will now wear name tags and thus, advised applicant not to engage any person without the issued name tag.
“As part of measures to be implemented, all officers will be made to wear name tags. The public is thereby advised not to engage any person who is unable to identify themselves with the issued name tags, as they most likely are middlemen, usually referred to as ‘goro boys’”.
It further advised applicants to pay only the approved application fees and not make any extra payment except when they are opting for the premium services which come at an additional cost of GH¢150.
“The public is advised to note that applications submitted to the regular PACs do not come at an extra cost. However, applicants have the option of submitting their applications to the Premium PACs, which attract an additional GH¢150 payable in cash at the Premium Centres for the use of their services”.
It added, “the payment is made electronically and not by cash”.
It reiterated that “Officers who have already served more than a year at the PACs will be replaced with immediate effect and the Ministry’s policy of the yearly rotation at the PACs will be enforced to the letter”.
