The Minority in Parliament has taken on the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Kingsforf Sumani Bagbin, over his decision to throw out its request for a bipartisan probe into international drug seizures linked to Ghana.
The Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, said the Speaker was wrong to use ongoing court cases as grounds to kill the motion.
Speaker Bagbin on Tuesday, September 29, ruled that the Minority’s motion was inadmissible, arguing it would interfere with matters already before the courts and could prejudice judicial proceedings.
The motion, filed by Tolon MP and First Deputy Minority Whip, Habib Iddrisu, on September 28, wanted Parliament to set up an Ad-Hoc Committee to look into how large consignments of narcotics were allegedly inspected, cleared and shipped out of Ghana.
It cited the recent interception of 3.9 tonnes of cocaine at Dunkirk Port in France on September 10, 2026, and 320kg of methamphetamine seized by Australian authorities in June 2026.
But according to Afenyo-Markin, Parliament’s job was not to determine guilt, but to examine the systems and institutions that allowed the drugs to leave the country.
“Mr Speaker got it wrong by using pending criminal proceedings to determine the scope of the inquiry,” he argued.
He warned that blocking Parliament from exercising oversight weakens democracy and accountability.
“The image of our country is on trial. A super-majority must never become an excuse to weaken the minority, silence scrutiny, or diminish Parliament’s oversight duty. When Parliament is weakened, accountability is weakened,” Afenyo-Markin said.
He insisted the Minority will not back down on the matter.
