Ghana’s embassy in Washington, D.C. has been closed down temporarily to allow for investigations into alleged corrupt practices carried out by a staff of the embassy.
The corrupt practices, including illegal extra charges, which had been occurring for nearly five years, were uncovered by a special audit team who assembled a few months ago to investigate alleged corrupt practices at the embassy.
A statement issued yesterday under the hand of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, in Accra said all staff members posted to the Washington embassy had been recalled immediately whilst the embassy’s IT department has been promptly dissolved.
The statement mentioned that Mr Fred Kwarteng, a staff member from the embassy’s IT department, has been dismissed for creating an unauthorised section on the embassy’s website that diverted visa and passport applicants to his company, Ghana Travel Consultants (GTC).
“The illegal extra charges, which were not approved by the ministry and Parliament as required under the Fees and Charges Act, range from $29.75 to $60 per applicant. Investigations reveal that he and his collaborators operated this illegal scheme for at least five years.
This conduct has been reported to the Attorney General for possible prosecution and the retrieval of funds obtained through fraudulent schemes,” the statement read.
It further noted that all locally recruited staff at the embassy have been suspended.
“Ghana’s embassy in Washington, D.C., will be closed for a few days starting today as we finalise the ongoing restructuring and systems overhaul.
We regret any inconvenience these radical measures may cause visa and passport applicants,” it emphasised.
The statement also affirmed that President Mahama’s government will continue to uphold a zero-tolerance policy for corruption, conflict of interest, and blatant abuse of office.
BY MALIK SULLEMANA & BERNARD BENGHAN
