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March 11, 2016
Consular officials warn Ghanaians of
fraudsters
Accra, Nov. 15, GNA - About three weeks to the close of
entry applications for the 2008 US Visa Lottery, also called
the Diversity Visa or DV, officials of the Consular Section
of the American Embassy in Accra are warning Ghanaians to be
wary of people who might want to dupe them in the
application process.
Mr Michael Gray, officer in charge of DV at the Section,
said the lottery was free to enter and the application fee
of 755 dollars for winning entries was to be paid only to
the Embassy during interviews after the applicant had been
declared a winner.
He asked applicants to avoid entering the lottery through
fixers, who set up tables in front of university
dormitories, in the village square or at their trade school.
Mr Gray said as long as unscrupulous fixers preyed upon the
ignorance of their compatriots to charge exorbitant fees for
both legal and illegal services, honest applicants would
suffer.
Ms Nan Stewart, Consular Chief at the Embassy, said there
had been an increasing number of fraudulent marriages
arranged for immigration purposes only. There is also the
prevalence of false birth and marriage certificates.
"These frauds do not do Ghanaians any good. They only help
to put the country in a bad light," he told a press
conference on Wednesday.
She asked legitimate applicants to consult only official
sources (www.state.gov or www.usembassy.state.gov/accra) for
information.
They should never knowingly engage in deception of any kind
and never to pay fees in connection with DV applications
other than the authorized application fee, which is payable
to the Embassy cashier.
Ms Stewart said persons seeking to enter the lottery
programme must register online through the designated
website (www.dvlottery.state.gov) adding that digital photos
must be submitted with the registration form.
She asked applicants who did not meet the education level
and job experience requirements specified in the
instructions not to submit and enter the DV programme.
Ghana is ranked third highest in Africa and seventh in the
world among winners of visa lottery. About 3,088 Ghanaians
won the 2007 visa lottery conducted last year.
GNA
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