It has emerged that most of Ghana’s Missions abroad risk ejection due to rent advance owed landlords.
According to reports, a number of the Missions are housed in rented properties with high payment costs, making it difficult to meet their annual rental obligations to their landlords.
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Ghana’s Missions in China, USA, South Korea, Belgium, France and many others, since independence, have not seen any significant renovation while others have become unfit for use.
But the most despicable is the Ghanaian Embassy in New York, where a Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs assessment report says rats, have taken over and crisscross during official business hours as if to welcome visitors to the embassy.
Captain Smart, Host of Adom FM’s anti-corruption segment, Fabewoso quoted $15,000 as the monthly rent for the building housing some of the Embassies.
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Ghana’s deputy Ambassador to China, Ambassador Horace Nii Ankrah, also confirmed the deplorable state of the embassies on the show.
He said the embassy in China is always embarrassed when the landlord shows up every month for rent.
“The respect we command in the international community, our embassy is not a replica of the country” the former D
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Ambassador Ankrah said the building which was acquired in 1972 had not seen any significant facelift, adding that he had to leave in a rented apartment where he paid $500 a month.
He suggested the state purchases permanent buildings in countries where it intends to have a long relationship with as a more prudent and innovative approach rather than the astronomical rent paid every month.
Ambassador Mr Ankrah urged the government to, as matter of urgency, obtain the needed funding to enable work to commence on the Missions.
It was also revealed on the show that the government, in 2016, secured a loan facility of $50million from Societe General to rehabilitate and reconstruct some of the Missions and also acquire additional properties.
The loan was approved by Parliament in 2016 and works were expected to commence in 2017 on 33 selected Missions.
But the money was yet to be disbursed to the missions for work to begin.