Ghana give date to reopen embassy for Washington afta investigation of fraud

Di ministry of foreign affairs for Ghana don announce say dem deploy IT experts and oda teams to di embassy for Washington DC wia dem shutdown on Monday.

Dis na afta investigation show say di IT officer for di embassy allegedly dey involved for visa fraud and oda tins.

According to di Foreign affairs minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, dem find say di IT officer Fred Kwarteng allegedly divert traffic from di embassy website to im own private company wia im bin dey charge $29.75 to $60 per applicant for visa and passport. BBC neva fit verify dis claim.

Na so di minister announce say dem dismiss oga Fred Kwarteng, wey dem suspend all local staff of di embassy.

Di ministry also recall all foreign affairs ministry staff wia dem post to Washington.

For one statement on Tuesday 27 May, di foreign ministry announce say di embassy for Washington DC go open on Thursday 29 May.

Di ministry also explain say dem don dispatch "team of ogbonge diplamts to run di mission and to ensure total overhaul, restore integrity for di embassy work and finish di restructuring wey don dey go on."

Di ministry also bin announced say di new IT pipo dem carry go di embassy office don dey work to "reconfigure di embassy website and di payment platform to remove all di unofficial and unauthorized links wia dey associated wit di IT system for di embassy."

For di mata of fraud and corruption for di embassy, di ministry say dem refer di mata to di auditor general and di attorney general for "further action and appropriate sanctions."

Meanwhile di minority for parliament don fire di goment ova di decision to closedown di embassy for Washington for di first place.

Deputy minority leader, Patricia Apiagyei bin tok parliament say "di decision na reckless and amateurish."

She tok parliament say "di foreign minister gat to explain to di chamber why im take dat decision and why dem no consult anybody."

"Dis decision don affect Ghana diplomatic relations; even if corruption don happun for di embassy, oda ways dey wia di goment fit to deal wit di mata, wey no go affect di whole kontri."

She add say "we go demand say goment do di right tin, sake of to close down ogbonge embassy for di world most powerful kontri, dis neva be good tin."

Background

Di foreign affairs ministry don close di Ghana embassy for Washington DC indefinitely.

Dis na afta one investigation inside di activities for dat embassy find corruption for dia.

Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa announce say di ministry bin take action afta di investigation show say some of di officers for dia dey involved.

"Wit di support of President John Mahama, I don take dis action from di investigative report," di ministry write on top im social media page.

According to di minister, di president don give go ahead to sack oga Fred Kwarteng wey be di IT officer for di embassy.

Di minister explain say "di investigation show say Oga Kwarteng wey dem employ on 11 August 2017, bin create unauthorized link for di embassy website wey bin dey divert visa and passport applications to im private company, Ghana Travel Consultants (GTC), wia im dey charge extra moni for plenty services."

According to di foreign affairs minister, oga Fred Kwarteng also "bin keep all di moni from clients wey im charge inside im private account."

Investigations don also find say im bin dey run dis illegal business for di embassy for at least five years.

"I bin report dis mata to di attorney general say make im begin to prosecute and collect all di moni wey oga Fred Kwarteng don make from pipo through dis illegal scheme," di foreign minister explain.

Apart from dis IT officer wey dem don sack wit immediate effect, di foreign ministry also don take oda actions against staff wey dey work for di Ghana embassy for Washington DC.

Di foreign ministry don also take oda actions:

- Di ministry don recall all foreign affairs ministry staff wey dem post to di Washington embassy wit immediate effect

- Di ministry don dissolve di embassy IT department

- All local staff for di embassy don dey suspended

- Di foreign ministry don report to di auditor general to do forensic audit of all di transactions and find di total cost of di fraudulent scheme

- Di Ghana embassy for Washington DC go dey closed for some days from Monday, as di ministry begin to dey restructure tins for dia

Di minister tok say dis actions go cause some pressure for pipo wey wan apply for visa and passport during dis period.

Dis na one of di actions wey di foreign ministry bin dey take to clean up di various missions and embassies, to improve dia services.

How pipo react to di Ghana embassy fraud mata

One pesin wey apply for visa in April don share receipts on top her social media.

Edem Klose, im receipts dey show say di third-party company wey belong to oga Fred Kwarteng bin charge her $30.75 to mail di visa back to her for di month of April.

She don describe di development as "crazy".

Im and oda pipo for di US say dem dey check dia options if dem fit to sue di IT officer.

One oga wey bin dey work for di Ghana embassy for di Washington between 2019 and 2022 bin chook mouth for dis mata.

Kofi Tonto wey bin di head of information and public affairs for di embassy tok local media network Asempa FM say di time im go di embassy, im meet dis IT officer, oga Fred Kwarteng.

Kofi Tonto explain say im do investigation for di mata wia im find say "oga Kwarteng don allegedly clone di information for di embassy website wia im redirect am to im personal page. Na so im don increase di cost for visa application from $130 to $230 and passport from $230 to $400."

"Im dey allegedly keep di extra moni from di clients, wia im tok say im go give me some of di moni make I no expose am. Fred tell me say I dey worry myserf sake of some of di big pipo for di embassy dey involve," oga Tonto tok for di radio programme.

Im tok say dem get to deal wit am well well, "but to shutdown di whole embassy, no be di right tin."

But oda pipo don chook mouth for dis mata, wia dem dey call for investigation by US authorities.

Rights advocate and former staff for di foreign affairs ministry for Ghana, Oliver Barker-Vormawor say "di scale of dis alleged fraud, and how im get international angle togeda wit di use of embassy resources to do dis fraud, na sometin wey US authorities need to investigate."

Oliver add say "to dey extort moni from vulnerable visa and passport applicants dey require say US authorities go investigate, follow di moni, freeze di assets of Fred Kwarteng and extradite am if necessary."

Meanwhile, some oda sabi pipo bin say to shutdown di whole embassy, no be good tin.

Former Consular general for Ghana for New York, oga Daniel Atta Boafo, don tok say dem fit to "arrest Fred Kwarteng sake of im dey work for Ghana for di Washington embassy."

But im feel say, di foreign ministry for no close all di oda departments, sake of e go affect mani pipo wey dey need visa and passport services.

"Even though we gree wit di fact say dem need to punish di culprits, I tink say maybe dem for no close some of di oda offices. For di meantime, I tink say di consular office for New York, fit to provide some of di visa and passport services."

Di Ghana embassy na one of di biggest missions around di world, wey dey serve as di official link between Ghana and di US.

Apart from di fact say e dey accredited to di US, di embassy for DC also dey accredited to Mexico, Costa Rica, Belize Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

To close di embassy now fit get serious wahala for trade, business and tourism.

Sake of apart from visa and passport services, di embassy dey provide oda services like repatriation of dead bodies, press accreditations, dual citizenship acquisitions and renunciations and oda immigration services.

Data about di volume of pipo wey dey do business wit di embassy no dey public, but di embassy get various departments wey dey offer important service to Ghanaians and oda foreigners, wey don dey try enta di kontri.