On Tuesday, September 29, Speaker Alban Bagbin ruled the Minority’s motion for a bipartisan parliamentary inquiry into major narcotics seizures inadmissible, citing overlap with pending criminal proceedings. Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo‑Markin rejected the decision, arguing that the existence of court cases should not limit Parliament’s oversight role.
Afenyo‑Markin said the Speaker had wrongly used the status of criminal proceedings to determine the scope of the inquiry, which was intended to probe public institutions and systems rather than replace judicial work. “Mr. Speaker, therefore, got it wrong by using existing pending criminal proceedings to determine the scope and manner of the inquiry,” he said.
The motion, filed by First Deputy Minority Whip Habib Iddrisu on September 28, sought an Ad Hoc Committee to investigate how major narcotics consignments were processed, inspected, cleared and exported from Ghana. Incidents cited included the seizure of 3.9 metric tonnes of cocaine at France’s Port of Dunkirk on September 10 and 320 kilograms of methamphetamine seized by the Australian Border Force in June.
Bagbin warned that the inquiry could require Parliament to examine evidence and witnesses directly connected to matters before the courts, and therefore ruled the motion inadmissible under Standing Orders 5, 6 and 103, Sub‑Rule F.
Afenyo‑Markin warned that weakening Parliament’s oversight could reduce checks on state institutions and said the Minority would continue to pursue the matter, stressing that effective parliamentary oversight is essential to Ghana’s democracy. “The image of our country is on trial,” he said.
