The Minister for the Interior, Hon. Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, has issued a strong warning to all security officers, demanding strict compliance with financial regulations or face immediate surcharges and penalties.
Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the Minister outlined his Ministry’s hardline stance against financial irregularities, stressing that the new directive applies to all agencies under the Interior Ministry, including the police, fire, and immigration services.
The Minister’s appearance before the PAC is part of Parliament’s ongoing scrutiny of state institutions cited in the Auditor-General’s report for financial mismanagement and procedural lapses. He revealed that the Ministry has already taken proactive steps to penalize culpable officials.
“We insisted that in the security services, they are supposed to do reconciliation or validation every month. So, if you are the superior who failed to do the validation, you have to be surcharged. Since then, we have surcharged those who were involved and ensured that they paid together with interest”
Hon. Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, Minister for the Interior
Mr. Mubarak emphasized that the Ministry will no longer wait for the Auditor-General’s report before taking decisive action. He warned that prompt and swift corrective measures are now a priority, ensuring that financial compliance is a mandatory, continuous process across all security services.
“The moment you get these infractions, just know that you are going to pay. And you will pay swiftly without any delay,” the Minister warned. His comments reinforce the government’s renewed commitment to fiscal discipline under the administration of President John Dramani Mahama.
Ex-Gaming Commissioner to Refund GHS 414k
In a separate but equally firm move to enforce accountability, Minister Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak vowed to personally hold former Gaming Commission boss, Peter Mireku, responsible for a significant financial loss.
The loss, amounting to GHS 414,590.53, was caused by a breach of a bond involving a former staff member. The Minister revealed that Mr. Mireku failed to follow due process when approving a study leave with pay for one Moses Teye Mensah, who later resigned without fulfilling his mandatory three-year bond obligation.
The Interior Minister made it clear to the PAC that this breach stemmed directly from a failure in oversight at the highest level of the Commission at the time. According to the Minister, proper procedural checks, such as requiring academic results after each semester and ensuring clear documentation, were ignored.
“He did not follow the laid-down procedure for granting someone study leave with pay,” Hon. Mubarak said.
This lapse allowed Mr. Mensah to exploit the system, completing his studies on January 30, 2025, and promptly walking away from his bond obligations. The Minister detailed a three-pronged enforcement plan to recover the lost public funds.
According to him, Peter Mireku will be made to pay the full amount due to his failure to follow procedure. The person who guaranteed the bond, identified as a lady still working at the Gaming Commission, will be made to pay a part of the money. Moses Teye Mensah will be placed on a stop list; any day he returns to Ghana, “he will be arrested at the airport and made to pay the outstanding balance.”
Acting Gaming Commissioner, Emmanuel Siisi Quainoo, confirmed to the PAC that the Commission has made multiple attempts to recover the money from Mr. Mensah, but without success. Mr. Quainoo stated that the former staff member “keeps tossing the Gaming Commission” by claiming he is pursuing another Master’s degree without providing transcripts or school details.
Mr. Quainoo further highlighted the gravity of the amount, noting that GHS 414,590.53 is significant enough to cover nearly half of the Commission’s monthly staff salaries. He confirmed the issue has been escalated to the Attorney-General, the Inspector General of Police, and now directly to the Interior Minister for enforcement.
Gun Licensing System is Still Manual
In further discussion at the PAC sitting, Hon. Muntaka Mubarak revealed that Ghana’s system for firearm registration and licensing remains fully manual, posing what he described as a “daunting” challenge for applicants and law enforcement.
He explained that acquiring a firearm license involves several cumbersome steps, including direct application to the Interior Minister, background checks by the National Investigations Bureau (NIB) or the Police Criminal Investigations Department (CID), fingerprinting, and payment of fees.
The Minister noted that while the process aims to control the number of guns in the country, the manual system creates significant loopholes in the renewal process. Firearm licenses are currently issued per the calendar year.
“You may take your license in November, and by December, it has expired. The law is such that the one-year mandate is within a particular year, that is, from January 1 to December 30. But because all these are manual, it becomes a daunting task”
Hon. Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, Minister for the Interior
Earlier, Inspector General of Police Christian Tetteh Yohuno told the PAC that many gun owners fail to renew their licenses on time, which means the police often remain unaware of unlicensed possession until an incident occurs.
The Minister disclosed that discussions are currently underway to transition the firearm licensing process to a digital platform to streamline operations and enhance national security.
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