'Family and Friends' recruitment at Foreign Affairs Ministry angers career diplomats - Report

Tension is brewing in the Foreign Service under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, following the incessant recruitments and promotions of party loyalists, family and friends of Akufo-Addo's government appointees into the service, which some of the staff consider as indiscriminate.

The Foreign Ministry, has just gotten financial clearance for some 320 newly recruited officers to serve in various capacities in the Foreign Service and insiders complain that they are mainly political party apparatchiks, close friends of people in the corridors of power and family members.

The skewed selection process, has ignited some agitation among senior staff of the service, but worsened by the promotion of these special recruits ahead of the professional diplomats and others, who have held the fort for all these years with a proven track record.

A source close to the Ministry, told this paper that aside the recruitment of some 40 officers known as "Hackman 40" into the service when Hackman Owusu Agyeman was the Foreign Minister in the era of President John Agyekum Kufuor, the practice is being repeated under the government of President Akufo-Addo.

A letter sighted by The Herald dated December 11, 2020, with reference number AC36/452/02F which was titled "RE: Financial clearance" and released to the head of civil service, from the Ministry of Finance, said "The Ministry of Finance as per the letter No. B/CPMU/2020/FC10 dated October 13, 2020, granted your organization financial clearance to recruit the under listed with effect from April 1, 2021.

The letter listed the following Foreign Service Officer (FSOs), A5/Director IIB, 22, two Principal Executive Officers, 63, B4 Senior executive officers, six, B5 Higher executive officers and 25, FSO C3.

Also recruited according to the letter are; 38, FSO C4. One, FSO C5, Five telephonists, six messengers, three store keepers and sixteen catering staff

The letter further stated that "the request for the following officers will be posted to your institution in due course. FSO A1/Director, nine, FSO A2 Deputy Director 15, FSO A3 Assistant Director I, 40, FSO A4 assistant director IIA, eleven and FSO B2 Asst Chief Executive Officer, 23."

It was explained that in the foreign service, there are three branches, these are FSO branch A, this is made up of administrative class, who go on to become Ambassadors, the FSO branch B which is the executive class, manages government accounts at post and the FSO branch C, are the secretarial class, and also serve as confidential secretaries.

So, if you apply for any of the branches, you start for instance from FSO A5, A4 to A3, A2 and then to A1.

The same system, applies to FSO B and the C branches.

However, during Hackman's time, the source said those 40, were recruited midstream and given a special treatment by starting them from A3 and A4 and were placed ahead of the A3 and A4 officers who were already in the system.

"Fast forward to 2016 when NPP regained power, they posted them before those in the system and made them seniors on the Foreign Service Precedence list", adding "these officers are now A1s therefore eligible to be considered for ambassadorial appointments including those who were in the system long before they were recruited," the source disclosed.

The source further said "obviously these recruits get more appointments than the FSO A1s who rose through the ranks by dint of hard work."

It said since taking over the country's leadership in 2017, the Akufo-Addo government, has continuously been recruiting into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs without considering whether or not the scheme of service, had been expanded to make room for new recruits at the present rate.

Currently, it was said that officers in the Foreign Ministry are now sharing desks and computers and they work in turns since logistics, including office furniture are not enough for everyone.

"Once you finish typing and printing, you leave the desk for another to do theirs", the source painted the dire situation at the Foreign Ministry.

"What's more, this letter is the latest list of recruitment that is making the rounds," the source added saying "most of the people they recruit are family and friends. There are some who live abroad and are made to relocate to Ghana to work at MFA."

More to come!