The Deputy Ranking Member on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, has challenged the government’s claim that 1,964 Ghanaians have been evacuated from South Africa.
He insisted that the Minority’s reconciliation of publicly available figures produces a significantly lower number the figure mentioned by the Minister.
Speaking on TV3’s Daily Brief, Thursday, September 10, he said the figures compiled by the Minority do not support the number announced by the government.
“Yes, we have contrary numbers and our numbers are not what the Minister put out there. Our numbers are way lesser than what the Minister put out,” he said.
Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh explained that the Minority Caucus had reviewed the dates and publicly announced numbers of travellers evacuated from South Africa and found that the cumulative figure does not reach 1,964.
“Our contrary number is not 1,964. That, we can tell you for a fact,” he stressed.
“We have reconciled the public numbers that were put out. They gave the date as to when the travellers came. We are putting all the dates and numbers of travellers that have come up and when you put all together, they are not even up to the number the Minister is putting out,” he explained.
He therefore challenged the Foreign Affairs Minister who was responsible for the evacuation exercise to provide documentary evidence supporting the published 1,964 figure.
“We have requested that the Minister tells us or gives information, how did he build his 1,964 figure? He should prove that with a document, not just coming to tell us,” Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh said.
The Minority at a press conference on Thursday, September 10 called on government to release comprehensive documentary evidence on the GH¢49.7 million reportedly spent to evacuate Ghanaians from South Africa amid recent xenophobic attacks.
The demand follows a briefing on September 7, 2026 by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, who disclosed that government had spent GH¢49.7 million to evacuate 1,964 Ghanaians from South Africa.
Addressing the press on Thursday, 10 September 2026, the Deputy Ranking Member on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, said the minister’s disclosure must be backed by documents that would allow Parliament and the public to independently verify the expenditure.
Asafo-Adjei Ayeh had earlier filed a Right to Information (RTI) request seeking details of the evacuation, including expenditure records and information on individuals and organisations that supported the exercise, and the amounts they contributed.
“We are asking government to tell the country what procurement method was used for each major flight and service arrangement, and who was paid,” he said.
