The Ghana High Commission in Pretoria has taken responsibility for clerical errors in the records of 15 Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa, following a JoyNews data analysis that raised questions about the payment of reintegration and transportation allowances.
In a press statement, the High Commission clarified that the errors affected only 15 of the 1,964 Ghanaians evacuated during the government’s exercise.
It explained that dates interpreted as dates of birth were, in fact, passport expiry dates, acknowledging that some passport details may have been incorrectly transcribed by officials.
The High Commission described the errors as minor, noting that they occurred during an emergency operation involving the evacuation of thousands of distressed Ghanaians.
It, however, maintained that every evacuee underwent the required identification, data-processing and departure formalities before being evacuated from South Africa.
According to the mission, the clerical errors do not invalidate the identities of the affected individuals, their participation in the evacuation exercise or their receipt of the approved reintegration and transportation allowances.
The High Commission subsequently provided verified personal and passport details for seven of the individuals referenced in the reports to clarify the discrepancies.
The clarification follows public scrutiny of the government’s expenditure on the evacuation exercise, with the mission seeking to address concerns arising from the analysis of the records.
By: Bernard Mensah
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