A Ghanaian woman identified as Yaa Tabby, has recounted a troubling experience at the Ghanaian Consulate General (Ghana Embassy) in New York.
Tabby, who is said to have been a participant in the US edition of #OccupyJubileeHouse protest in October 2023, described feeling deliberately overlooked and made to wait for an extended period, despite arriving before others who were served promptly.
In a series of tweets detailing her visit on Wednesday, March 27, 2024, Tabby explained that she had gone to the embassy to collect her brother-in-law’s visa, which had not been mailed to them as expected.
However, she found herself waiting while others received preferential treatment from staff and a man in dreadlocks who was not employed but was distributing passports.
Tabby expressed frustration when an unauthorized individual repeatedly entered and exited a ‘Staff Only’ room to retrieve passports for other visitors, exacerbating her sense of unfair treatment.
“Upon arriving, I wrote down his name and number and was asked to take a seat, which I did. A lady came out and started calling out names for the visas. Three gentlemen were there to pick up other people (one for his daughter and the other two for a group). She called out the names and asked who she was missing, so I politely told her my brother-in-law’s name again. She asked if I had written his name down, and I said yes. She told me to wait for the next batch of names, and I obliged.
“As I sat down again to wait for my turn, a young lady came in and asked if they had mentioned her mum’s name because she had missed it, and she was asked to wait for the next round of names like I was told to. Five minutes later, a guy with dreadlocks came in and spoke… to the young lady waiting (they seemed to know each other well). This guy proceeded to go into the office that read STAFF ONLY (DO NOT ENTER UNLESS AUTHORIZED), so I assumed he worked there when he entered. No wahala! He came out and spoke to the same young lady again and went back in the second time. This time, he returned with a passport in his hands and handed it to the girl, and she said, “Oh, thank you, anka mɛtena ha akyɛ.” Sis got up and left. A guy who also came to meet me was…” she tweeted.
Yaa Tabby revealed that she confronted the man with dreadlocks upon realizing he was not authorized to distribute passports. Despite some officials’ attempts to calm her down, she returned to her seat and waited to be called.
When her turn finally came, Tabby was shocked by the request made at the counter, finding it so amusing that she burst into laughter.
“I calmly sat down and waited to be called, and finally, the short, chubby lady (the one that calls out names) called me to the window. I got up and walked there, thinking I was just picking it up like THE REST OF THE PEOPLE DID. Still, no, this lady looked me in the eye and said, and I quote, “I need an authorization letter from the person you are picking it up for and let him send it to ghanaconsulate@aol.com” I just started laughing out loud because, ma’am, please make it make sense!
“Several people walked in here and picked up passports and visas on behalf of other people, but you didn’t even ask for an ID! I went out and called my brother-in-law, and he wrote the letter and sent it to the email. 2 minutes later, I walked up there and told the other gentleman that the letter was sent, so if they can check and verify it, I can get out, please. That was when this short, dark lady (according to my investigation, she’s called Mimi) came to the window and said I should go and print out the letter because they don’t have printers in the Embassy. She said ‘watɔ printer wɔha sɛ yɛmfa printi papers ɛmma wo, sɛ wokaasɛ wo nkoara na wonim mmara.’
“That was when I lost it, so because I spoke up about something bad that I have witnessed, you are trying to frustrate me. The ladies at the back were speaking Ga and laughing, and I know damn well they were talking shit about me, so me too. I gave it to them! She even told me it wouldn’t go anywhere when I said I would file a complaint,” she added.
In her tweets, she tagged the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and demanded a response to the unprofessional behavior of its officials.
Her tweets prompted other Ghanaians to share their own experiences at the same Ghana Embassy.
