{
  "id": 18141678,
  "title": "There must be a serious shake-up at NACOC over drug scandals – Brako-Powers",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/04/there-must-be-a-serious-shake-up-at-nacoc-over-drug-scandals-brako",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-04T15:55:37.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "3News",
    "slug": "3news",
    "url": "https://3news.com/news/there-must-be-a-serious-shake-up-at-nacoc-over-drug-scandals-brako-powers"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Legal expert Austin Kwabena Brako-Powers has advocated for significant changes at the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) in response to recent drug-related controversies. During an appearance on TV3’s Big Issues on November 3, 2026, Brako-Powers criticized the Commission’s handling of the Beirut operation, where a Ghana-linked suspect was arrested. He questioned the effectiveness of the Commission’s response and the clarity of its explanations. Brako-Powers argued that the operation, which NACOC described as a controlled delivery exercise, should have enabled law-enforcement to trace the movement of illicit drugs and identify larger criminal networks. However, Brako-Powers pointed out discrepancies between the quantities of drugs reported by Lebanese authorities and NACOC’s account. He also raised concerns about the lack of transparency regarding the Commission’s communication with Lebanese security agencies regarding the suspect’s departure from Ghana. Brako-Powers called for a comprehensive overhaul of NACOC, emphasizing the need to restore public confidence in the institution’s ability to tackle drug trafficking effectively.",
  "summary": "He described the Commission's November 1 statement as a face-saving attempt that failed to address the substantive questions surrounding the operation",
  "key_points": [
    "Legal expert Brako-Powers calls for major NACOC shake-up",
    "Criticizes Commission's Beirut operation handling and transparency",
    "Advocates overhaul to restore public confidence in drug fight"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "MyJoyOnline Ghana",
        "title": "Sack NACOC, GACL bosses over drug trafficking failures – Nana B",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/04/sack-nacoc-gacl-bosses-over-drug-trafficking-failures-nana-b",
        "published": "2026-11-04T16:01:30.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}