Second Deputy Minority Whip and MP for Weija-Gbawe, Jerry Ahmed Shaib, has publicly questioned the credibility of the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) and other Executive agencies investigating recent cocaine cases in Ghana.
Speaking on TV3’s Hot Issues on Sunday, September 27, Jerry Ahmed pointed to comments from NACOC’s Deputy Director-General, Alexander Twum-Barimah, as evidence that the commission cannot be trusted to conduct an independent probe. Twum-Barimah had linked the recent cocaine smuggling incidents to a 2018 directive by the then Vice President that led to NACOC’s withdrawal from port inspections.
“You cannot trust anybody. A single unit or a political party or even the government on its own suo moto to come and say that we have done this, so take it hook, line and sinker,” Jerry Ahmed said.
The Weija-Gbawe MP expressed particular concern about Twum-Barimah’s public remarks during the same TV3 interview, which he said prejudged the investigation. Twum-Barimah claimed that the smuggling was due to NACOC’s absence at the ports since the directive in 2018.
Jerry Ahmed questioned how an institution that had already made such assertions could credibly investigate the matter.
“When I watched you interview this NACOC person who had come to already prejudice and come to say this thing (cocaine busts) happened because sometime in 2018, the then Vice President directed that NACOC should be withdrawn from the ports. And you are asking me to sit here and believe that this same person should be a body that is investigating a situation like this?” he said.
Pressed on whether he trusted the Executive’s investigation, Jerry Ahmed responded bluntly: “Not at all and without doubt.”
He argued that the investigation should not be left solely in the hands of NACOC or any agency directly connected to the issues under scrutiny. Jerry Ahmed said the Parliamentary bi-partisan probe called for by the Minority was the proper way to handle the case.
“Parliament comes in with a bi-partisan approach and we have a constitutional mandate to let Ghanaians know that these are matters we are interested in and at the end of the day, we want to bring in important structures to ensure that these things don’t happen again,” he said.
Jerry Ahmed also raised doubts about whether some NACOC officers might be compromised in connection with the cocaine smuggling cases. His comments follow widespread concern over the recent busts and the routes cocaine traffickers use through Ghana’s ports.
The 2018 directive that led to NACOC’s withdrawal from port inspections came under the administration of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), according to Twum-Barimah. The Deputy Director-General’s statement appeared to shift responsibility for the current smuggling issues to past government policies.
Jerry Ahmed’s call for a Parliamentary inquiry aims to create a more neutral forum to investigate the allegations and hold those responsible to account. His position reflects broader skepticism about the ability of government agencies alone to police themselves in such high-profile cases.
No further details were given on the scope or timeline of the Executive’s ongoing probe or how the Parliament’s proposed investigation would proceed. The cocaine cases remain under scrutiny as authorities seek to prevent further incidents.
According to 3News.
