About 1300 applicants out of the over 100,000 applicants who participated in the recent security service recruitment mandatory medical screening tested positive for HIV, the Interior Minister has revealed.

He made the revelation during an appearance before the Government Assurance Committee of Parliament on Tuesday, July 7.

Explaining why applicants who fail the medical screening stage of security service recruitment exercises do not receive their medical results directly, the Minister said the decision is guided by international medical protocols, particularly in cases involving sensitive health conditions such as HIV, hepatitis B, and other serious diagnoses that require professional counselling before disclosure.

According to him, individuals who do not meet the medical requirements are provided with a means of contacting the recruitment authorities if they wish to know the reason for their disqualification. Once they make contact, they are taken through the necessary counselling process before any medical findings are discussed.

"I remember the recent recruitment we had. I think about 1,300 also were on HIV. Can you imagine sending somebody a result telling the person that you have HIV? That's not the procedure. The person has to go through some orientation," he said.

Mr Muntaka indicated that the screening process uncovered a range of health conditions among applicants, including HIV, hepatitis B, heart-related ailments, mental health conditions, complications from previous major surgeries, and drug-related issues.

He noted that many of the identified conditions are manageable or treatable, making it important for affected persons to seek medical attention and improve their chances of qualifying in future recruitment exercises.

"Some of the things that we realised are treatable. People need to know and then also get treatment so that, in subsequent recruitment, they could join," he stated.

The Minister therefore encouraged unsuccessful applicants to take advantage of the channels provided to obtain information about their medical status, stressing that some may be living with health conditions they are unaware of.

"It may be something minor, it may be something major. Whichever it is, if you get to know, it will be of great interest to you," he said.

He further revealed that more than 100,000 applicants progressed to the medical screening stage after completing the aptitude test component of the recruitment process.

Addressing concerns over whether applicants who tested positive for HIV had been informed, Mr Muntaka said the government had deliberately avoided directly communicating such results without counselling. Instead, affected individuals were allowed to voluntarily seek clarification regarding their disqualification.

"We provided contact for people to call who were interested in knowing why they failed... We are obliged to give them the results, but we can't send them to you on the phone," he explained.

Some members of the committee, however, suggested that authorities should consider a more proactive counselling approach for applicants diagnosed with HIV, arguing that early awareness could support timely treatment and help reduce transmission risks.

In response, the Minister maintained that the current system safeguards applicants from receiving life-changing medical information without the necessary psychological and professional support, adding that it conforms to internationally accepted procedures for communicating diagnoses such as HIV and hepatitis B.

Meanwhile, over 6000 prospective applicants have missed the opportunity to become security personnel in Ghana after failing the medical screening as part of the requirements in the recruitment process.

During an interview with Accra-based Pan African TV on Saturday, May 23, the Interior Minister, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, indicated that the disqualified applicants were disqualified in the medical screening stage of the ongoing security services recruitment exercise after testing positive for drug use or being diagnosed with mental health conditions.

According to him, his outfit introduced these extra examinations due to long-standing concerns about the mental health of the security personnel in the country. However, following the screening (drug testing and mental health assessments), more than 4,000 applicants failed the drug tests, while about 2,000 others were disqualified on mental health grounds.

“We have over 100,000 people who have gone through the medicals. Because of the large numbers and because of what we have observed within the services, we introduced additional checks, including mental health assessments and drug tests. Interestingly, over 4,000 people failed the drug test, and we have over 2,000 who also failed due to mental health conditions,” he said.

Mr Muntaka noted that the outcome of the screening highlights the importance of strengthening recruitment procedures to ensure that only qualified and medically fit individuals are enlisted into the security services.