Yahaya Amantana Mahama, the Director of Passports, has reportedly been interdicted pending investigations into alleged irregularities surrounding the acquisition of a service passport.
The interdiction is said to have followed a petition submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by a prominent Ghanaian pastor and his wife, whose identities have not been disclosed.
According to reports, the petition raised concerns about the acquisition of a service passport and other related matters.
In response, a five-member committee chaired by Ambassador Alexander Grant was reportedly constituted on October 13, 2026, to investigate the allegations and establish the circumstances surrounding the matter.
The committee is expected to present its findings to the sector Minister by the close of this week, barring any last-minute changes.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Francis Danti Kotia has reportedly been appointed to act as Director of Passports while investigations into the matter continue.
The development follows concerns raised by the Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Abu Jinapor, who alleged that diplomatic passports were being sold for between US$10,000 and US$50,000.
Meanwhile, Bernard Bediako, the Akwatia MP, has dropped fresh details about an employee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who has been interdicted over alleged irregularities involving the sale of passports.
The Akwatia MP dismissed the claims linking the ongoing investigation to diplomatic passports, insisting that the case involved service passports instead.
According to him, the employee at the centre of the investigation was recruited in November 2024 and had been interdicted after the alleged misconduct came to light.
The Akwatia MP cautioned against misrepresenting the matter, noting that the distinction between service passports and diplomatic passports was important in understanding the allegations.
Speaking on TV3 on Wednesday, November 4, 2026. Bernard Bediako stated, “Let me tell you, the issue at hand, the narrative all over, has nothing to do with a diplomatic [passport]. It has everything to do with a service passport, if they don’t know the difference. It has nothing to do with a diplomatic passport. There is nothing about a diplomatic passport; if they have any evidence, they should say.
“In fact, with the service passport, it is an employee they recruited in November 2024. Because the matter is under investigation, it’s not even fair to the gentleman. Let’s be fair. It’s under investigation. We know, we all know what happened. As we speak, the gentleman is no longer working there. He’s been interdicted,” he said.
The Akwatia MP further defended the Foreign Affairs Minister’s handling of the matter, saying, “There is no issue as we speak now, because the minister acted swiftly. Those who were supposed to be interdicted were interdicted,” he stated.
He further challenged Abu Jinapor to produce evidence backing his claims that diplomatic passports were being sold, maintaining that the allegations being investigated should not be confused with the reported sale of diplomatic travel documents.
The Akwatia MP reiterated that the employee’s alleged involvement concerned service passports and not diplomatic passports.
“This matter, where the gentleman and then some other people were allegedly involved in whatever they did, has nothing to do with diplomatic passports, but rather service passports,” he insisted.
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