Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has withdrawn and apologised for allegations he made against the Interior Minister, Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka, over the ongoing security services recruitment exercise.

The retraction was made on the floor of Parliament on Wednesday, March 4, after the First Deputy Speaker, Bernard Ahiafor, referred Mr Afenyo-Markin to the Privileges Committee for possible contempt.

The referral followed a complaint by the Interior Minister, who described the allegations as unfounded and injurious to his reputation.

Mr Afenyo-Markin had earlier claimed that the engagement of a third-party IT firm in the recruitment process amounted to a scam and imposed an unfair financial burden on applicants.

Addressing the House, the Minority Leader clarified his position and formally withdrew the claims.

“Mr Speaker, I will not do that to hurt him or tarnish his reputation, and if the text of my concern reflected so, it is hereby accordingly withdrawn. I assure you that concerns that will arise out of any matter shall be properly brought to his attention,” he stated.

Responding to the apology, Mr Muntaka said the allegations had caused him significant distress due to their seriousness.

“It is painful to be wrongly accused and be labelled differently from the intention that you have, especially when it is connected with heavy wrongdoing. I am heavily hurt and heavily worried, but who am I to say that I will not accept when my colleague comes to apologise? I accept it wholeheartedly,” he said.

He further appealed to the Speaker to have the matter removed from the official parliamentary records.

“My plea is that, if it is possible, it should be expunged from our records so that it will be as though it never happened,” he added.

The management of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) has alerted the general public about a fraudulent recruitment scheme being circulated via the website GOLERNERSHUB.COM.

This site falsely claims the opening of a protocol recruitment portal.

The Service has disassociated itself from this false information and reiterated that the "GIS has not engaged any individual, group, or third-party website to conduct recruitment exercises or sell protocol forms on its behalf."

The GIS' Intelligence Section, in collaboration with other state security agencies, is currently pursuing credible leads to apprehend and prosecute the perpetrators behind this fraudulent scheme.

The public has been advised to disregard and report any communication or solicitation from GOLERNERSHUB.COM or similar unofficial sources.

"Anyone who engages with such fraudulent entities does so at their own risk," the GIS warned.

According to the GIS, no official clearance has been given by the government for any recruitment exercise at this time.

The Service has therefore assured the public that advertisement will be made through the appropriate and credible channels, including the national newspapers and its official platforms when recruitment is authorized.

The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) has joined the many state institutions dispelling claims of ongoing recruitment.

The GAF in a statement said, "the general public is hereby informed that the Ghana Armed Forces is not undertaking any recruitments/enlistments yet."

The security institution thus noted that any such advertisement or information of any form "is fake and should be ignored."

The public is thereby urged to be wary of scammers and fraudsters.

"The general public would be informed of any future recruitments/enlistments, which are always placed only in the Daily Graphic and the Ghanaian Times," the statement added.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Prisons Service has denied advertising the recruitment of personnel as Prison Office Assistants (POAs) under the Youth Employment Agency (YEA).

The attention of the Prisons Administration has been drawn to a flyer circulating on social media that suggests so.

In a statement, the Prisons Service stated that it "strongly disassociates itself from this advertisement as it has no knowledge or information of the content on the flyer and cautions the public to treat this as fake news."

The Service noted that the public would be notified through reliable media releases as and when it has collaborated with the Youth and Employment Agency for any such initiative.

It therefore stated that "until such announcement is officially made, all such advertisement must be regarded as fake."

Eleven fire service personnel, including two senior officers have been dismissed from the service over recruitment fraud.

The management of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) announced this in a statement issued on August 5, 2022.

The dismissed officers were involved in various acts of indiscipline ranging from vacation of post to recruitment fraud.

The statement signed by its Public Relations Officer, T. Osafo-Affum, said the “Service would like to assure the general public of its commitment to uphold the highest disciplinary standards and shall always take appropriate disciplinary action against recalcitrant officers.”

The statement added, Management would also like to encourage the General Public to report any acts of indiscipline against any personnel of the Service or call the Public Relations Department on 0299341436 for any inquires, clarifications or complaints.