The Minority in Parliament has filed a private member’s motion seeking the establishment of a nine-member ad hoc committee to investigate allegations of the sale and irregular issuance of Ghanaian diplomatic and service passports.

The motion, led by the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Abu Jinapor, seeks an inquiry into reports that the passports were issued to persons who do not qualify under the National Liberation Council Decree (NLCD) 155, as amended by PNDCL 310.

It also calls for investigations into allegations that government officials received payments through intermediaries to facilitate the issuance of the passports and that false official designations were used to obtain them.

The Minority further wants the committee to examine claims that some unqualified passport holders received official assistance to travel or evade immigration scrutiny.

In the motion, the Minority cited Article 103 of the Constitution and Standing Order 262 as the basis for establishing the committee.

It wants the proposed committee to examine “the applications, representations, approvals, payments and administrative acts connected with the allegations”, as well as institutional arrangements for preventing irregular issuance.

The proposed investigation would cover specific transactions brought before Parliament and a targeted review of all diplomatic and service passport approvals and issuances from January 7, 2025, to the date the motion is adopted.

The Minority is proposing a nine-member committee drawn from both sides of the House, with members selected partly on the basis of their expertise in relevant parliamentary committees.

As an interim measure, the motion calls on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to suspend the issuance of all diplomatic and service passports until the committee completes its work.

It also wants the Ministry and other relevant institutions to preserve all documents, electronic records, communications and other materials connected to the allegations.

The proposed committee is expected to obtain from the Foreign Affairs Ministry details of all diplomatic and service passports issued since January 7, 2025.

The motion follows preliminary findings by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which identified 10 service passports allegedly issued irregularly between January 2023 and August 2026.

The Ministry also received two petitions alleging payments of US$29,000 and US$5,000 in connection with the scheme.

Two serving officers have since been interdicted and referred to the Ghana Police Service for further investigations and possible prosecution. The conduct of a former Director of Passports during the period under review is also expected to be examined.

The 10 passports have reportedly been cancelled, with efforts underway to trace the beneficiaries, including those alleged to have used the documents for international travel.

Separately, the Office of the Special Prosecutor has commenced investigations into alleged corruption and irregularities in the issuance of Ghanaian diplomatic and service passports.

Minority seeks nine-member probe into alleged sale of diplomatic passports

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