Alexander Afenyo-Markin
The Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has urged the government to suspend the ongoing medical screening for applicants seeking recruitment into the country’s security services until Parliament receives a full briefing from the Interior Minister on the process.
Raising the matter on the floor of Parliament yesterday, the Effutu Member of Parliament (MP) expressed concern that the current arrangement could impose a heavy financial burden on thousands of unemployed youth who are eager to join the security agencies.
According to him, records presented by the Minister for the Interior, Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka, indicate that about 200,000 applicants had qualified to proceed to the medical stage of the recruitment process, even though only about 5,000 vacancies are available across the various security services.
Mr. Afenyo-Markin warned that allowing all qualified applicants to undergo medical examinations, each costing about GH¢1,600, would create a situation where many young people would spend substantial sums of money despite the limited number of positions available.
“Practically, what it means is that after paying GH¢1,600 each, about 200,000 people will go for medicals with a legitimate expectation of progressing in the process, yet only 5,000 will eventually qualify,” he told the House.
He therefore appealed to the government, through the Leader of Government Business, Mahama Ayariga, to temporarily halt the exercise until the Interior Minister appears before Parliament to provide clarity on the recruitment process.
The Minority Leader noted that MPs across the country are already facing pressure from constituents who are desperately seeking support to pay for the medical examinations.
“As it is today, if they start the medicals and people are paying GH¢1,600, the pressure will be on all MPs. I was in Winneba and the pressure on me was enormous, and I am sure other MPs are experiencing the same,” he said.
Majority Leader’s Response
However, the Majority Leader and MP for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga, defended the ongoing recruitment process, insisting that the government is simply providing equal opportunity for all young people who wish to join the security services.
He explained that the large number of applicants reflects the scale of unemployment in the country, as many young people are seeking stable employment through the security agencies.
Mr. Ayariga argued that the government could easily have limited opportunities to a few preferred candidates but had instead chosen to open the process to all eligible applicants.
“We promised every young person in this country a fair opportunity. What we are doing is simply giving them that opportunity,” he said.
He added that many highly educated young people, including some with university and master’s degrees, have applied for the positions using their Senior High School certificates in order to meet the eligibility requirements.
According to him, despite the limited vacancies, many applicants would still prefer to go through the full recruitment process, including the medical examination, because of the possibility of being selected among the final successful candidates.
Mr. Ayariga also dismissed calls for refunds of application-related payments, noting that previous recruitment exercises conducted by the former administration followed a similar arrangement without refunding applicants.
He maintained that the larger issue confronting the country is unemployment and the need to create more jobs beyond the public sector.
The Majority Leader stressed that while the government would continue to recruit into the security services within its fiscal capacity, long-term solutions must focus on strengthening the private sector and revitalising the economy to generate sustainable employment for the country’s growing youth population.
By Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House