More than 500 people have been removed from Ghana’s security services after a government review uncovered irregularities in recruitment processes carried out before and after the December 2024 general election.
The Minister for the Interior, Mr Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, announced the removals on Monday, 14th July 2025, during the first Government Accountability Series held in Accra.
He said a special committee reviewed the records of about 5,200 recruits across the various services and found that hundreds of them did not meet the basic requirements for entry.
The affected agencies included the Ghana Police Service, which saw about 320 disqualified, the Ghana Immigration Service, where some 730 were removed, and the Narcotics Control Commission, which had about 50 affected.
Mr Muntaka explained that the review followed public concerns over how recruitment exercises were conducted in the final months of the previous administration. In August 2024, just before the elections, several recruitment advertisements were issued. The Minority in Parliament later alleged that the process lacked transparency and had been manipulated to favour political loyalists.
The minister said the vetting looked at academic qualifications, age, and medical fitness.
“We were able to get out about 320 who were not supposed to be there,” Mr Muntaka said, referring to the Police Service. “Some were in their forties, diabetic, and medically unfit, but they were picked. We had to explain to them that with their situation, they could not remain in the service.”
He also recounted how an MP had intervened on behalf of a relative who had nearly completed training. On closer review, it was discovered that the individual had not passed a single subject in the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSSCE), which was a minimum requirement for entry.
“They called and said the person didn’t pass SSSCE, didn’t even record one subject,” Mr Muntaka told journalists. “Once you don’t meet the basic qualification, you have to go.”
According to him, all affected individuals were given written explanations for their removal.
To address broader concerns about fairness, Mr Muntaka said the Ministry is planning new recruitment guidelines that will allow for clearly defined technical and support roles.
He said future recruitment will include non-academic positions for tradespeople such as drivers, dressmakers, cooks, and painters, but those selected will be recruited strictly for those roles.
“I know people who went to vocational school and became dressmakers. The services need them to sew uniforms,” he said. “But they must know they’re being recruited as artisans, not officers.”
He added that future job notices will spell out roles and qualifications to avoid confusion and restore public trust in the process.
Since the 2024 elections, Ghana’s security services have faced questions about professionalism and political interference.
Concerns about “party foot soldiers” being slipped into the services resurfaced during the transition period, prompting calls for reform.
The current audit is among the most extensive recruitment reviews in recent years. According to Mr Muntaka, it is part of a broader effort to ensure fairness and raise standards within the security sector.
The Government Accountability Series, introduced by the Presidency, is intended to give the public regular updates on ministerial performance. Other ministers are expected to deliver their briefings in the coming weeks.
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