Director of Passports at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Louis Kwame Obeng has indicated that his outfit has eliminated the operations of middlemen, popularly known as, “Goro men” to a very large extent.

The operations of middlemen in the acquisition of Ghanaian Passports has prevailed over the years. The notion is that, they provide a faster means of acquiring a passport. However, since he assumed office in December last year, one of the main targets of the Passport Office has been to eliminate the phenomenon of middle-men.

Mr Obeng joined hosts of Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, Tuesday, to discuss and answer questions in relation to the Passport acquisition and renewal process.

“We all recognize that the problem of middle men operating in our passport acquisition process has been with us for years.

“But through beefing up the system and operations at the Passport Office, currently when you are applying for a Passport, you don’t need to contact a middle person. You go through the online application system, or if you have an emergency, we have a system that addresses emergency situations.”

As Director of Passports, Mr Obeng said that one of the routine cases he handles on a regular basis has to do with Ghanaians who require emergency services.

He therefore encouraged citizens not to solicit the help of middle persons when in dire need of a passport for emergency purposes.

“If you visit an application centre of your choice and you go through the online process, and you require an emergency service, I always advise applicants that please contact the Officer in Charge (OIC). And the OIC would assist you,” he advised.