Selective Security Recruitment: Peace Council Sleeping on Its Job-Minority
The Minority caucus in Parliament has called on the National Peace Council and other relevant stakeholders to address concerns over the government’s recruitment practices for security agencies.
The Minority alleges that the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) is selectively recruiting party loyalists and vigilantes, which could jeopardize national peace.
The government recently advertised recruitment opportunities for various agencies under the Ministry of Interior, including the Police Service, Immigration Service, Prison Service, and Fire Service.
However, the recruitment was limited to individuals who had applied in 2021.
The Minority, in a statement signed by the Ranking Member of the Defence and Interior Committee, James Agalga, condemned this restriction, describing it as a threat to the country’s peace.
The Minority had earlier petitioned the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), arguing that the so-called backlog recruitment is a dangerous move aimed at filling security services with politically aligned individuals.
Mr. Agalga warned, “The non-existent backlog is a ploy to recruit party vigilantes and goons into the security services, with the intent of influencing the outcome of this year’s elections, which are just a few months away. Should this happen, the peace and security of our country will be in serious jeopardy.”
The Minority urged the Peace Council, international partners, and civil society organizations to speak out against these recruitment practices before it is too late.
They reiterated its call for equitable recruitment practices across all security services, ensuring equal access and opportunities for all citizens.
The objective, they emphasized, is not to oppose the recruitment of youth into the security services but to guarantee fairness and transparency in the process.
Below is the Minority Full Statement
RECRUITMENT INTO THE SECURITY SERVICES UNDER THE MINISTRY OF THE INTERIOR
The attention of the minority in parliament has been drawn to publications in the 7th August editions of the Ghanaian Times and Daily Graphic newspapers, which seeks to advertise recruitment into the security services under the ministry of the interior. It is important to state that the advertisement for recruitment is coming on the back of a petition the minority submitted to the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and inter alia complained about the recruitment of personnel into the security services based on a purported backlog.
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 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 this year’s elections which is only a few months away. Should this happen, the peace and security of our dear country will be in serious jeopardy. It is against this backdrop that we in the minority will urge the Peace Council, our foreign partners and Civil Society groups to speak out before it is too late.
In conclusion, the minority wishes to renew its call for a strict adherence to a balanced structuring of all the security services including the Armed Forces, the creation of equal access and opportunity to all by the security services in terms of recruitment. The minority is not against the recruitment of the youth of this country into the security services at all. On the contrary, our objective is to guarantee equal access and opportunity to all in terms of recruitment into the services.
Signed:
James Agalga
(Ranking Member of the Defence and Interior Committee of parliament)
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Source: Felix Nyaaba // expressnewsghana.com
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