The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has announced the temporary closure of Ghana’s embassy in Washington, D.C., following allegations of widespread corruption and abuse of office.
The decision was made after a special audit team uncovered a long-running fraudulent scheme at the diplomatic mission.
At the center of the scandal is Fred Kwarteng, a locally recruited IT staff member who admitted to creating an unauthorized link on the embassy’s website. This link redirected visa and passport applicants to his private firm, Ghana Travel Consultants (GTC), where they were charged unapproved fees.
Investigations suggest the scheme had operated undetected for at least five years, with payments going directly into Kwarteng’s personal account.
The Minister has taken decisive action, recalling all Foreign Ministry staff posted to the Washington D.C. mission to Accra, dissolving the embassy’s IT department, and suspending all locally recruited staff pending further investigations. The Auditor-General has been tasked with conducting a full forensic audit to determine the total financial loss to the state. The matter has been referred to the Attorney-General for possible prosecution and recovery of misappropriated funds.
Mr. Ablakwa emphasized that the temporary closure is necessary to restore integrity and accountability to Ghana’s diplomatic operations. “President Mahama’s government will continue to demonstrate zero tolerance for corruption, naked conflict of interest, and blatant abuse of office,” he stressed. Despite the potential inconvenience to Ghanaians and foreign nationals seeking consular services, the government insists that bold action is essential to cleanse the system.
