Use administrative discretion to reduce passport application fees – Ablakwa urges Foreign Affairs Ministry

Ranking member on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee and MP for the North Tongu constituency, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, is urging the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration to use “administrative discretion” to reduce the new fees for passport applications.

The ministry, in a statement dated Monday, April 1, 2024, announced the increment of the passport processing fees from between GHC500 and GHC800.

Per the new fees, applicants will pay GHC500 for a 32-page standard and GHC644 for a 48-page standard booklet, whereas those opting for the 32-page expedited service will pay GHC700 and GHC800 for the 48-page expedited service.

The new fees represent about a 544 percent increment from the original fees.

The North Tongu lawmaker, in an interview on TV3 New Day, stated that the NDC members on the Foreign Affairs committee raised concerns about the proposed increments by the sector minister.

“It is important to emphasise that even though they have the L.I. [Legislative Instrument] after the 21 days, they can use an administrative discretion, that gives you more of a ceiling so they can use an administrative discretion looking at the backlash, looking at the complaints of Ghanaians to take a second look at the rate within what has been given.”

He added, “My understanding is that without parliamentary practices, you will not have the power to charge above when these ceilings are given. But anything below, you can use administrative discretion as a minister to do that.”

Mr Ablakwa further noted that should the minister fail to reduce the fees, the NDC minority will “trigger action to revisit this matter” when the House resumes from recess.

He also explained that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not get the approval of the new fees from the Foreign Affairs Committee of which he is a member but rather received approval at the Parliament’s Subsidiary Legislation Committee.

“The next [thing] we heard was that they had taken advantage of the fees and charges act at another committee, which is the Subsidiary Legislation Committee, different from the Foreign Affairs Committee,” he told Berla Mundi on the ‘The Big Issue’ segment of the New Day.

Source:Fiilafmonline/3News