A member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) communications team, Dennis Miracles Aboagye has called on Parliament to reconvene and establish an inquiry into series of cocaine-related cases recorded in Ghana.
He said the inquiry should, if possible, be conducted publicly to provide clarity on the circumstances surrounding the cases and demonstrate Ghana’s commitment to tackling the growing concerns over narcotics trafficking.
He made the call while speaking on TV3’s Daily Brief, Tuesday, September 22.
“Parliament should immediately reconvene, set up an inquiry into this cocaine situation, possibly a public one so that we can understand clearly as a people what is going on,” he said.
According to Mr Aboagye, a parliamentary inquiry would also send a strong message to Ghana’s neighbours and international partners that the country is taking the issue seriously.
“This would also send a very strong signal to our neighbours and friends across the world that we are not sleeping on this. We take serious note of what is happening and as a country we are taking drastic measures, not laid-back, lackadaisical desktop measures,” he said.
He said urgent action is needed to avoid any international reputation damage to Ghana due to the recent cocaine busts.
He further argued that the issue should not be treated as a partisan matter, given the number of major cocaine-related incidents recorded within a relatively short period.
“This situation requires urgent attention. This is not an NPP or NDC business. Whether we like it or not, we are in a crisis. Within 20 months, a country witnessing 12 major cocaine issues is a major matter,” Mr Aboagye said.
He urged Parliament and the relevant state institutions to take decisive steps to establish what is driving the cases and prevent Ghana from being associated with the term “cocaine coast.”
