Ghana Immigration staff train in containers

Our investigations has revealed that officers of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) have for sometime now been training in makeshifts containers at its training school in Assin-Fosu in the Central Region.

The paper learned that the Assin-Fosu GIS training school is nothing more than an uncompleted building which is preventing new officers from using the facilities in the school.

These makeshifts are in the form of metallic containers which were left there by the contractor who started the building project of the Immigration training school.

Not only do the new recruits have lectures in these containers but also used the containers as their resting rooms.

The paper established from some Immigration Officers that the conditions at the Assin-Fosu training school were very deplorable that some of the officers who go there to train could not withstand and normally run away.

Although the school was designed to have facilities such as lecture halls, accommodation, offices among others, none of such has been completed. And the lack of the above facilities, the paper learnt, has always worsened the plights of enlisted persons who go there for their training.

Investigations conducted revealed that the GIS Assin-Fosu Training School was started by the former Inspector General of Police (IGP), Nana Nsiah, when he was appointed as the Commanding Officer (CO) of the School. The project, however, grinded to a halt the moment IGP Nana Nsiah exited as the CO of the training school.

Our findings further indicated that the GIS intended to also build a multi-complex facility on its Assin Fosu vast stretch of land. That project, according to sources close to GIS, necessitated the Netherlands government to donate funds towards the construction of the complex.

But unfortunately, all such assistance TODAY gathered have not helped in any way in ensuring that the training school is completed. And since then nothing has been done by management of the GIS to ensure that the project is finished to enable new recruits enjoy the comfort of their training.

The paper found many West African countries in the sub-Saharan region considered Ghana a suitable place to come and train their immigration officers. But what has always discouraged them according to a Senior Immigration Officer who spoke to our reporter on condition of anonymity was that “Ghana does not have the facilities to undertake such programmes.”

The Senior Immigration Officer also bemoaned the situation where Ghanaians treated Immigration Officers with contempt.

“Such practices do not augur well and always bring our hard-won reputation into disrepute,” indicated the Senior Officer.