Labourer Mans Border Post in Volta Region

THE IMMIGRATION desk at Menuso border post in the Kadjebi district of the Volta region is controlled by a cleaner/labourer.

This came to light when a Chronicle reporter visited the border post during the Easter holidays.

Menuso is a few minutes' drive from Kadjebi and the immigration officers in charge of the border post reside at Kadjebi and spend just about three hours from 10.00a.m. to 1.00 p.m., each day, at the border, leaving travellers at the mercy of the labourer.

People in the village see the behaviour of the immigration officers as a protest action since all the available accommodation are occupied by personnel of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS).

After a traveller goes through the customs check point, he or she is left at the mercy of this labourer. Last week, a scuffle nearly ensued between the labourer and some students when the he demanded a bribe from them before allowing them to cross to Togo since some of them had no passports.

The CEPS officers intervened, but they refused to mention the name of the labourer to the students, after revealing to the them that the guy is the janitor and that he sleeps there and cleans the offices for the immigration officers. He therefore takes the opportunity to deceive travellers that he is an immigration officer in mufti.

The CEPS officers themselves hinted that on Saturday, April 12, there was confusion when the janitor attempted to prevent a group of Muslims from crossing to join their counterparts in Togo for a religious ceremony. It took the intervention of the CEPS officers to save the cleaner/labourer from the wrath of the Muslims who nearly beat him up.

Sources at the border say this has been the order of the day for sometime now, since the labourer has been harassing travellers, and the earlier something is done about it, the better.