Refrain from giving tips for public services -Immigration Commander advises
Nii Ofoli Wilson, the Municipal Immigration Commander for Ashaiman, has urged the public to refrain from offering tips in order to access public services including getting passports, birth certificates, and driver’s licenses.
Mr. Wilson was speaking at a community education event in Ashaiman organized by the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) to advise locals on how to report corruption and to raise their awareness of it.
He claimed that the custom—which was frequently used to mean “protocol”—did not provide the benefit for which tipping or bribery was paid.
Apart from tips and bribes, Mr. Wilson said that people frequently utilized their social or familial connections to bypass queues and get quicker and better access to hospitals and schools.
The Immigration Commander associated the bad act with the attitudes of some Ghanaians who willingly gave out money without request when seeking public service, with intentions to strengthen social bonds.
“People should not encourage the practice so that it becomes normalized because everyone has an equal opportunity to be served. But in the minds of some, tipping is something that implies better service, which is very wrong.
“There’s no reason to pay your way through if indeed you’re qualified for any position or service,” he added.
