10 security recruits dismissed for keeping phones during training

At least 10 recruits have been dismissed from Ghana’s security services training schools after they were caught with mobile phones in breach of training rules.

Interior Minister Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak said the recruits had been directed to surrender their phones upon reporting to their respective training institutions but secretly kept the devices.

According to him, some of the recruits hid the phones in their pillows in an attempt to avoid detection.

He said the dismissals were necessary to maintain discipline within the training schools and ensure that recruits understand the standards required in the security services.

The Minister made the disclosure during an interaction with students of Satafiya Islamic Senior High School in Kumasi.

He used the engagement to speak about recruitment into Ghana’s security services and the conduct expected of persons who enter the training system.

Mr Mubarak said discipline is central to security training, and recruits who begin by disregarding basic instructions raise serious concerns about their suitability for the services.

He said joining a security agency comes with strict responsibilities and obedience to lawful directives.

The Minister also disclosed that the latest recruitment exercise was highly competitive.

According to him, more than half a million people applied, but only about 10,000 were selected for training.

“It was so vigorous that over half a million people applied. We ended up taking only 10,000. Indiscipline: people got there, and they were hiding their phones in their pillows. First, the moment you get to training school, they take all your phones,” he said.

Mr Mubarak said the action taken against the affected recruits should serve as a warning to others that indiscipline will not be tolerated in the security services.