Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has revealed that Fred Kwarteng, a staff member at Ghana’s Embassy in the US, earned $4.8 million annually through an illegal visa scheme.
Speaking in Parliament on June 14, Ablakwa stated that a fact-finding team uncovered the scale of Kwarteng’s operations. The team, made up of senior diplomats and officials from the Foreign Affairs Ministry, found that the entire amount went into Kwarteng’s private account. The Ministry received none of the funds.
According to Ablakwa, Kwarteng created an unauthorized link on the embassy’s website. This link redirected visa and passport applicants to his private company, Ghana Travel Consultants. There, he charged applicants extra fees for services without ministry approval.
“This conduct is criminal,” Ablakwa emphasized. “EOCO and the Attorney General must investigate, recover the proceeds, and prosecute all involved.”
As part of a swift response, the government has shut down the embassy temporarily to carry out a full overhaul. All Foreign Affairs staff posted to the embassy have been recalled to Ghana. The embassy’s IT department has also been dissolved.
Additionally, all locally recruited staff have been suspended, and Kwarteng has been dismissed. He was hired on August 11, 2017, to work in the embassy’s IT unit.
An audit revealed Kwarteng’s actions had gone undetected for years. Ablakwa said this case shows the urgent need to strengthen oversight at Ghana’s diplomatic missions.
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