About 300 Ghanaians travelled to Europe and other destinations using diplomatic and service passports they allegedly paid for, Ghana’s parliamentary Minority has said.
The opposition caucus will file a motion on Monday, November 9, seeking a bipartisan investigation into the alleged scheme.
Speaking at a press conference in Parliament on Sunday, the Minority’s foreign affairs lead, Samuel Abu Jinapor, accused officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Passport Office of running a travel-and-tour operation for paying clients who did not qualify for the documents.
The allegations came after the Foreign Affairs Ministry cancelled 10 illegally issued Service Passports and referred two interdicted officers to the police. The ministry said its investigation covered a service-passport scheme dating back to 2023, but added that it had found no evidence that Diplomatic Passports were being sold.
“As at now, our sources indicate that some 300 Ghanaians have travelled to Europe and other destinations using diplomatic and service passports allegedly issued through this arrangement,” Jinapor said.
The Damongo MP was ejected from the parliamentary chamber on Tuesday, November 3, after alleging that diplomatic passports were being sold for between US$10,000 and US$50,000.
Evidence presented by Minority
Jinapor displayed redacted passport biodata pages, approval letters, two GCB Bank deposit slips dated June 15 and June 24, 2026, and mobile money transaction records.
The Minority identified a Ghana-based man it alleged managed the operation, along with an agent in Europe who supposedly collected payments for officials from the Ministry and Passport Office.
“These are only some of the payment records we have obtained. The persons who provided them say these were payments made for the diplomatic and service passports and the promised travel arrangements,” Jinapor stated.
He also presented letters purportedly signed on behalf of Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa. The documents allegedly approved passports for applicants assigned false official positions at bodies including the Ghana TVET Service, the Fisheries Commission and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO).
One letter dated June 1, 2026, described an applicant as Deputy Director of Audit Services at the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council. Three days later, the same person was identified as Deputy District Coordinating Director at the Akrofuom District Assembly.
Jinapor further alleged that ministry officials helped beneficiaries pass through the airport while avoiding checks by the Ghana Immigration Service. The claims have not been independently verified, and none of the people named by the Minority has been charged.
Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin had earlier defended Jinapor’s parliamentary statements, saying MPs had a duty to scrutinise state travel documents.
Jinapor said Diplomatic Passports allow visa-free entry to 62 countries, while Service Passports provide access to 59. He added that only Hong Kong, Qatar and Turkey distinguish between the two categories.
“It is easier to see why these benefits will appeal to someone seeking to travel abroad but these passports are supposed to be issued for official purposes. They are not privileges to be sold to anyone willing to pay,” he said.
The proposed motion, to be submitted under Article 103 of the Constitution, would establish an ad hoc committee to examine all diplomatic and service passport approvals from January 7, 2025, until the date the motion is adopted.
Majority Leader James Agalga named Acting Passport Director Yahaya Amantana Mahama as having been interdicted on Friday as part of an internal investigation. Jinapor said the Ministry could not investigate itself.
“More importantly, the very people who superintended this rot cannot be the same persons to investigate it. This matter requires an independent and impartial investigation,” he said, calling for the committee to question the Minister and the interdicted Passport Director under oath.
