File photo of an immigration officer
The Minister of Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, has disclosed that an officer of the Ghana Immigration Service, known to be a staunch member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), once lobbied government officials to appoint him as Controller-General of Immigration, despite holding a much lower rank.
Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament on Monday, 30 September 2025, the minister expressed concern about the growing trend of unqualified officers within the security services seeking top positions through political influence rather than merit.
According to Mohammed-Mubarak, the officer in question, a Superintendent of Immigration, approached individuals “in the corridors of power,” demanding to be made the Controller-General simply because of his loyalty to the ruling NDC.
“I know an immigration officer when we first came that he is so NDC that…he is a superintendent of immigration and he went to tell the corridors of government that he should be made the controller general.
“Myself, until I became the interior minister, I didn’t know their system very well, so I looked at it and I said I don’t want to believe this is true. So, I called the controller, can you check your system what his rank is, to confirm what I have on his paper.”
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The minister described the situation as alarming and symptomatic of a broader problem where some officers rely on political affiliations for career advancement rather than professional competence.
“From Superintendent, you must rise through Chief Superintendent, Assistant Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner before reaching the top…but this officer wanted to jump all the ranks because he belonged to a political party. That is unacceptable.”
Mohammed-Mubarak warned that such political interference risks undermining discipline, professionalism and the credibility of Ghana’s security services.
He revealed that similar cases had been observed in other agencies, including the Police and Fire Services, where individuals expected automatic promotions or transfers without fulfilling the necessary qualifications or passing required examinations.
“We cannot continue doing politics and destroy the very institutions we have,” he stressed.
The minister noted that the current government is introducing new measures within the security services to curb such practices and restore merit-based progression.
While some officers have expressed discomfort with these reforms, he insisted that they are necessary to ensure professionalism and maintain public trust in Ghana’s security institutions.
@misjoan07 Many institutions are guilty of this, what it does is it discourages the hard working staff who knows no body at the top. #getkennected #viral #misjoan #usatiktok🇺🇸 #ghanatiktok🇬🇠♬ original sound – Misjoan
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