Els: MBN360
The Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Defence and Interior Committee, Kofi Amankwa-Manu, has criticised the government over the ongoing security services recruitment controversy, arguing that authorities were aware of their recruitment capacity before opening applications to hundreds of thousands of applicants.
Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Friday (13 March), Amankwa-Manu said the recruitment process into agencies under the Ministry of the Interior must be guided by financial clearance and infrastructure capacity, making it impossible for officials to claim ignorance about the number of recruits they could absorb.
According to him, the recruitment exercise was already limited by budgetary allocations approved through the national budget.
“Before you even think of recruiting, you need clearance from the Ministry of Finance, and that clearance specifies how many people you can recruit,” he explained.
Budget approval limited recruitment numbers
Amankwa-Manu said funds for the recruitment of about 5,000 personnel had already been appropriated, meaning authorities knew the ceiling for the exercise before opening applications.
He noted that the Interior Ministry typically allocates the approved recruitment numbers among the various security agencies under its supervision.
“If it is 10 cedis you have for recruitment, you distribute it among the agencies—police, immigration and others—based on their needs,” he said.
According to him, the recruitment process must also consider the capacity of training facilities used by the security services.
“You cannot recruit beyond what the training facilities can accommodate at any given time,” he added.
Floodgates opened for applications
Amankwa-Manu blamed policy changes in recruitment requirements for the unusually high number of applicants.
He pointed to the extension of the age limit for applicants from 25 to 35 years and the removal of some academic requirements, arguing that the changes significantly increased the pool of eligible applicants.
“That alone opened the floodgates,” he said.
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The MP also questioned the decision to charge applicants an application fee while accepting a very large number of candidates despite limited recruitment slots.
According to him, the process has led to accusations that the exercise resembled a “Ponzi scheme” because authorities knew they could only recruit about 5,000 personnel while more than 500,000 people applied.
Minority calls for refunds
Amankwa-Manu said the Minority in Parliament believes applicants who paid recruitment fees but were unsuccessful should be refunded.
“If the system was not properly designed and people paid money when government knew it could not absorb them, then it is realistic to refund the money,” he argued.
He said the key concern is that applicants were encouraged to apply despite the limited recruitment capacity.
“You cannot promise something you cannot offer and still take money from people,” he said.
Parliamentary oversight expected
The lawmaker noted that Parliament’s Defence and Interior Committee has not yet formally received complaints regarding the recruitment process.
However, he said once petitions are submitted and referred by the Speaker of Parliament, the committee will investigate the matter as part of its oversight responsibilities.
Call for review of recruitment process
Amankwa-Manu urged the Interior Minister to temporarily halt the recruitment exercise and engage Parliament’s committee on defence and interior to review the process.
According to him, such consultations would help restore public confidence and ensure future recruitment into the security services is transparent and credible.
“For many young people, joining the security services is one of the few stable employment opportunities available,” he said.
“It is important that the process remains transparent and free from any perception of exploitation.”
