Prez Mahama leaves Accra for 81st UN General Assembly in New York

Vice President of IMANI Africa and lawyer, Kofi Bentil, has raised questions about the purpose of President John Dramani Mahama's meetings with security officials amid the seizure of nearly 3.9 tonnes of suspected cocaine linked to Ghana. On JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, September 19, Mr Bentil stated that the focus should be on understanding how a consignment of such size managed to leave Ghana before being intercepted by French authorities.

"The President is trying to have meetings with the same people. I don’t know where he’s trying to go," he remarked.

French customs seized the suspected cocaine at the Port of Dunkirk on September 10. The narcotics, concealed in a container carrying plastic waste that departed from Ghana, were valued at approximately €225 million. Mr Bentil expressed concerns about possible lapses in Ghana's port and border-control systems, particularly given the magnitude of the shipment.

He argued that the incident could not be dismissed as an isolated failure and called for those accountable for screening and clearing the container to be questioned over the incident.

Six individuals have been denied bail by Kwabenya Circuit Court in connection with the shipment, including four Customs officers from the Ghana Revenue Authority accused of mishandling scanning procedures at Tema Port. The prosecution alleges that examination of scanning images revealed abnormalities necessitating further scrutiny before the containers were cleared.

President Mahama has since established an inter-agency task force to devise, within two weeks, a roadmap to enhance measures against drug trafficking through Ghana's borders. Ten people, including four Customs officers, are currently in custody as investigations progress.

Mr Bentil emphasized that the investigation must ultimately determine how the consignment managed to bypass Ghana and whether officials or systems responsible for detecting narcotics failed in their duties. He described the incident as detrimental to Ghana's reputation and stressed the need to fully account for the circumstances leading to the shipment leaving the country. "Someone should answer these questions," he concluded.