Ghana Embassy in Washington Temporarily Closed Over Major Corruption Scandal
The Ghana Embassy in Washington, D.C., has been temporarily shut down following the uncovering of a major corruption scandal involving embassy staff.
This was announced by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, in a Facebook post on Monday.
According to the Minister, the decision follows the findings of a special audit team commissioned months ago to investigate reports of corruption within the embassy.
One of the key figures implicated is Mr. Fred Kwarteng, a locally recruited staff member who joined the embassy’s IT department on August 11, 2017.
Investigations revealed that Mr. Kwarteng created an unauthorized link on the embassy’s website, which redirected visa and passport applicants to his private firm, Ghana Travel Consultants (GTC).
Applicants were reportedly charged between US$29.75 and US$60 in unapproved fees.
“All proceeds were kept in his personal account, bypassing official channels and breaching the Fees and Charges Act,” the Minister stated.
Mr. Kwarteng has admitted to the misconduct, and the matter has been referred to the Attorney-General for possible prosecution and recovery of funds.
As part of sweeping reforms, the Ministry has taken the following immediate actions:
Dismissal of Mr. Fred Kwarteng.
Recall of all Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff posted to the Washington embassy.
Dissolution of the embassy’s IT department.
Suspension of all locally recruited staff at the mission.
Request for the Auditor-General to conduct a forensic audit to assess the full scale of the fraudulent scheme.
Temporary closure of the embassy for a few days to facilitate a complete systems overhaul and restructuring.
The Minister acknowledged the potential inconvenience to Ghanaians and other applicants seeking consular services during the closure, but emphasized that these “radical measures” are necessary to restore integrity.
“President Mahama’s government remains committed to a zero-tolerance policy towards corruption, conflicts of interest, and abuse of office,” Hon. Ablakwa affirmed.
The embassy is expected to resume operations after the reforms are completed.
Source : Felix Nyaaba/expressnewsghana.com
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