The Deputy Director-General of the National Service Authority (NSA), Fuseini Donkor, has revealed that the rollout of the new registration system has been fraught with difficulties, largely due to inconsistencies in the personal data of prospective national service personnel.
Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Mr. Donkor said the transition to the new system has been “hectic,” with several unforeseen challenges arising from the data verification process.
“After we changed and rolled over the system, it has been hectic. We have been badly hit,” he stated.
According to him, although there is mounting pressure on the NSA to extend the registration deadline, the Authority is determined to adhere to its schedule.
“There are some heavy powers breathing down the neck of the NSA boss to extend the registration deadline, but we can’t, because per our timetable, by November 1, all prospective service personnel are supposed to have their postings,” he explained.
Mr. Donkor disclosed that close to 40 percent of the 146,000 uploaded student records have discrepancies, particularly in names and dates of birth.
He said the majority of these issues stem from candidates who altered their ages in the past to meet eligibility requirements for either voting or tertiary education admissions.
“Upon a deep check by the IT team, we realised that most of the people who completed SHS in 2020 inflated their ages to secure the Ghana Card for the Voter ID so they could vote. It is now biting them,” he noted.
He added that some former students also adjusted their ages to qualify for admission as mature students, further complicating the current verification process.
“With the way the system is now, you will automatically be blocked if all your details do not correspond,” Mr. Donkor stressed, revealing that over 10,000 people have been affected by the inconsistencies.
To address the challenge, the NSA has partnered with the National Identification Authority (NIA) to facilitate on-site corrections. “We had to bring the NIA to our offices so they could set up. You swear an affidavit, then we gazette it, so the NIA issues a new instant Ghana Card,” he explained.
Mr. Donkor urged affected individuals to act swiftly to regularize their records, noting that many still have not accessed the system to correct their data.
He assured that while deployments will begin as scheduled, rectifications will continue concurrently.
Source: Gertrude Otchere
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