Minority to file a motion to demand an inquiry into recruitment into security services

The Minority in Parlament has served notice to file a motion to demand an inquiry into the recruitment into security services since 2017.

The Minority Leader, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson said this is to protect the integrity of the security services.

He was reacting to the Minister of the Interior, Henry Quartey who had threatened to release the names of National Democratic Congress (NDC) Members of Parliament who submitted names of individuals to be recruited into the country’s security services.

Mr Quartey was responding to a comment by the Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, that the government had given 30 recruitment slots into the country’s security services to parliamentary candidates of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP).

But in a statement reacting to him, Dr Ato Forson said “I can assure you that we will bring a motion to Parliament to demand an inquiry into the recruitment into security services since 2017.

“The integrity of our security services and the trust of the Ghanaian people in our institutions depend on our collective commitment to transparency and justice.”

Below is his full statement…

I find the recent statements by the Interior Minister, Henry Quartey, both alarming and baseless. His insinuation that members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) have participated in improper recruitment practices without providing any evidence is a clear attempt to divert attention from the substantive issues at hand.

The Minister’s remarks, made during an interview with Neat FM on May 21, 2024, and reproduced in the article below, come off as a hollow threat intended to intimidate and silence legitimate criticism from the Minority Caucus.

Our concern has been and remains the transparency and fairness in the recruitment process into our country’s security services. Specifically, we highlighted credible information suggesting that the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) is manipulating recruitment processes to favor its parliamentary candidates with 30 slots each. This allegation is serious and deserves a substantive response, not deflection.

I challenge the Interior Minister to name the individuals he claims were brought forward by NDC MPs for recruitment. Let us move away from rhetoric and towards accountability. If the Minister cannot provide these names, then his statements must be seen for what they are: an attempt to distract from the substantive concerns we have raised.

Mr. Minister, I can assure you that we will bring a motion to Parliament to demand an inquiry into the recruitment into security services since 2017.

The integrity of our security services and the trust of the Ghanaian people in our institutions depend on our collective commitment to transparency and justice.