Evacuation Of Ghanaians: Minority Demands Full Account Of Expenditure

The Minority in Parliament has called for a comprehensive, itemized account of the government's expenditure of nearly GH¢50 million on the evacuation and reintegration of 1,964 Ghanaians from South Africa and other locations. While the government has defended the decision to safeguard Ghanaian nationals facing security threats and xenophobic attacks in South Africa, the Minority insists that the humanitarian nature of the operation should not prevent scrutiny of the spending.

Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee and MP for Damongo, Samuel Abu Jinapor, stated that Parliament and the public should be informed about the exact use of funds. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported spending GH¢49,721,786 on the operation, averaging around GH¢25,000 per evacuee. Of this amount, GH¢38,835,512 was allocated to evacuation-related services such as chartered flights, air tickets, ground transportation, food, hotel stays, medical care, and hospitalisation in South Africa.

However, the Minority argues that the released figures only offer an aggregate view and lack a detailed breakdown of how the funds were distributed across various aspects of the evacuation. Jinapor emphasized the importance of transparency and value for money, noting that such a significant expenditure relative to the number of people evacuated warrants a full financial statement.

The Minority's demand for financial records predates the latest government disclosure, stemming from a formal request under Ghana's Right to Information Act. Jinapor clarified that this latest solicitation is part of an ongoing parliamentary effort to ensure financial accountability, distinct from opposition to the evacuation itself.