Former Member of Parliament for North Dayi, George Loh has criticized the four Members of Parliament (MPs) who have been barred from entering the UK for indulging in what has been largely described as “visa fraud.”
[contextly_sidebar id=”E14phv9QTA7v56h9ecq1S41wu4OttRHH”]The alleged visa fraud came to the fore after the sighting of a confidential letter the British High Commission in Ghana wrote to the Speaker of Parliament, Professor Aaron Mike Oquaye, accusing the MPs of facilitating the entry of some of their supposed relatives to the UK using their Diplomatic Passports.
The letter cited Richard Acheampong, MP for Bia East in the Western Region; Joseph Benhazin Dahah, MP for Asutifi North in the Brong Ahafo region; Johnson Kwaku Adu, MP for Ahafo Ano South West in the Ashanti Region and George Boakye, former MP for Asunafo South in the Brong Ahafo.
Speaking on the development on Citi FM’s News Analysis Programme, the Legal Practitioner said the MPs should be sanctioned for wrongfully using their diplomatic passports.
“This is a bad situation particularly for the other three. When you are issued with a diplomatic passport, the intention is not for you to travel with your wife on a holiday. The only reason why MPs are given diplomatic passport is because you go on delegations and sometimes these delegations include delegations with the presidency, the Ministers,…”
Mr. Loh said the policy of securing diplomatic passports for MPs became a reality after several reported cases of unnecessary delays especially during the erstwhile Atta Mills’ administration.
“What happened is that because you did not have a diplomatic passport you were stranded virtually so at one point Prof Mills had to wait for two hours at the VVIP because he was travelling with a group of MPs and because he and the Ministers were on a diplomatic passport they had been checked in through VVIP and they were sitting there but the MPs had to go through the regular line and it delayed unnecessarily so after that , the decision was that because the MPs go and represent the country on international missions, give them diplomatic passport.”
The lawyer believes it will be needless to rationalise this development since “when you are an MP, the only reason why the British High Commission feels comfortable giving you the visa is because they are confident of your status in society. “
“If you go and you do not do what you are supposed to do, they have a right to impune on your credibility.”
Former MP to sue UK High Commission over Visa fraud claims
Meanwhile, lawyers for one of the accused, a former MP for Asunafo South constituency, George Boakye, have asked the British High Commission to reverse its travel ban imposed on the former legislator.
According to the lawyers, the grounds for the imposition of the ban were unfounded.
–
By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @EfeAnsah