Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has criticised attempts by the Majority in Parliament to link recent cocaine seizures to a policy introduced under the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) government.

His comments followed remarks by Majority Leader James Agalga, who said recent narcotics seizures were connected to a 2018 decision that excluded the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) from mandatory joint inspections at the Tema Port.

Agalga, speaking at a press briefing in Parliament on September 24, 2026, said the decision had weakened NACOC’s ability to monitor cargo passing through Ghana’s busiest port.

He said the government had since taken steps to strengthen NACOC, including reinstating the Commission’s participation in mandatory joint inspections and expanding its operational presence across the country.

According to Agalga, NACOC recorded 73 arrests nationwide in 2024, but the figure increased to 217 arrests across 165 cases in 2025.

He also cited the seizure of 1,497.75 kilogrammes of narcotic substances in 2025, along with other controlled substances and assets allegedly linked to drug-related activities, as evidence of stronger enforcement under the current administration.

However, Manasseh Azure disagrees with the decision to attribute the current drug trafficking problem to the previous administration.

In a Facebook post on September 26, 2026, he argued that the John Dramani Mahama administration had been in office for nearly two years and should therefore take responsibility for addressing weaknesses within the country’s security and narcotics control system.

“Granted that there was a flawed policy at the port that affected vigilance over drugs, the officials you appointed over a year ago should have assessed and realised the gaps,” he wrote.

He questioned why security and narcotics officials appointed by the current government would need foreign authorities to expose weaknesses in Ghana’s system before the gaps were identified.

“Don't create the impression that your security advisors and narcotics officials are dumb, that they could not diagnose the gaps until foreigners started busting drug shipments from Ghana,” he added.

Manasseh also rejected what he described as an attempt to shift responsibility for the drug problem to the NPP.

“Blaming the NPP for the drug menace is unacceptably lame. You were elected to fix the problems you said the NPP was incapable of fixing,” he stated.

The journalist further argued that the government could not take credit for improvements in narcotics enforcement while attributing existing weaknesses to the previous administration.

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“You can't take credit for the positive developments and blame the NPP for the lapses under your watch,” he said.

Manasseh maintained that the government was now responsible for the country’s security architecture and therefore should focus on addressing the current drug trafficking challenge rather than engaging in political blame.

“It doesn't make sense to continue to blame the NPP when you're in charge of the entire national security architecture of the nation,” he wrote.

He also criticised the politicisation of the drug issue, noting that similar accusations had featured prominently in Ghana's Fourth Republic political discourse.

“The politicisation of the drugs problem is nauseating,” he said, while recalling previous political accusations in which the NPP had been described as a “cocaine party.”

Despite the political history surrounding the issue, Manasseh said the immediate focus should be on the responsibility of the current administration.

“As for the real issues, President Mahama and the NDC administration are responsible for solving the problem we have now.

“Do not shift blame to the opposition. It will not wash. They are not in charge. You are," he added.

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