Former Ghanaian Lawmakers and senior government official including former presidents will now be required to physically appear at the US embassy to obtain travel visa for non-governmental related travels to the US. This mean they will no longer benefit from protocol service accorded to such dignitaries in the past.
It is not clear why the Trump administration has instituted this change but according to source in the legislature US Ambassador to Ghana Robert informed the Ghanaian members of parliament about the new rule. He is quoted to have said that “if you are traveling for tourism or business that is not related to government business, you will be required to make a personal appearance, even with former presidents. There are no exceptions.”
The Ambassador gave no clear reason for the change. This has lead to speculations including the notion that this was an attempt to curb abuses by some beneficiaries of the protocol services or a retaliation for the recent Ghanaian Supreme Court ruling as unconstitutional the 2016 transfer of two Guantanamo detainees to Ghana. The British High Commission in Ghana recently exposed a number of dignitaries for visa fraud. They were accused of using the diplomatic channels to obtains tourist visa for family members who went to the UK only to overstay their visas in some cases for for years.
According report the Ghanaian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will seek clarity from the US government on this new rule and may introduce a similar requirement on ex-us government official seeking to visit Ghana.
