Passport scandal is institutional problem, should not be reduced to political gain – Vicky Bright

Lawyer and Social Commentator Vicky Bright has described the alleged irregular issuance of Ghanaian diplomatic and service passports as an institutional problem, urging political actors not to exploit the controversy for partisan advantage.

Her comments come amid investigations into an alleged passport-for-sale scheme within the passport administration system.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said preliminary findings had identified 10 Service Passports allegedly issued between January 2023 and August 2026 to people who did not qualify for them.

Reacting to this, the legal practitioner said the matter raises serious concerns about the integrity of the country’s passport administration system and could affect Ghana’s international reputation.

Speaking on Accra-based JoyNews’ AM Show on Monday, November 9, Ms Bright cautioned that foreign authorities could lose confidence in Ghana’s verification processes if the allegations were not properly addressed.

“And if foreign authorities lose confidence in our verification processes, then genuine travellers may face all sorts of problems out there. So it is something that we have to take seriously,” she said.

Ms Bright said the alleged irregularities appears to span successive administrations, making it necessary to examine the weaknesses in the system rather than assign blame along political lines.

She further noted that official passports derive their authority from the Republic of Ghana and should only be held by persons who meet the requirements.

“It is an institutional problem. It's not something that we should use for political gain because at the end of the day, it's a very serious thing for someone to just carry a diplomatic or service passport when they have nothing to do with any official position or whatever,” she argued.

Meanwhile, the Minority in Parliament has called for a parliamentary inquiry into the wider allegations, claiming that some unqualified individuals were assigned false public office designations to obtain diplomatic and service passports.

The caucus has also alleged that about 300 Ghanaians travelled abroad using documents obtained through the arrangement.