The Minority in Parliament says it has been unable to reconcile the travel records of 791 Ghanaians reportedly evacuated from South Africa, raising questions about the documentation supporting the government’s official total of 1,964 returnees.

The concerns were presented by Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, Member of Parliament for Bosome-Freho and Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, following an examination of documents provided by Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

According to Mr Ayeh, the records reviewed by the Minority showed that 926 people travelled on chartered flights.

Based on the government’s total of 1,964 evacuees, the MP calculated that another 1,038 people would have travelled on commercial flights.

The Minority, however, says it could identify documentation for only 247 commercial-flight passengers in the records supplied by the Ministry.

When the 247 passengers are added to the 926 recorded charter-flight passengers, the total comes to 1,173, leaving a difference of 791 from the official evacuation figure.

The MP also questioned the commercial-flight expenditure of GH¢9,420,463.68, which reportedly covered tickets and layover expenses.

Using the estimated 1,038 commercial-flight passengers, the Minority calculated an average cost of approximately GH¢9,076 per person.

Applying that average to the 791 passengers whose travel records it says could not be reconciled, the Caucus estimates that about GH¢7.18 million in flight-related expenditure requires further explanation.

The Minority is demanding that the Ministry provide the relevant passenger manifests, airline tickets, invoices and payment records to establish how the expenditure corresponds with the reported number of evacuees.

The evacuation exercise began on May 27 and ended on September 4, 2026, following renewed xenophobic attacks and intimidation in South Africa. The final group of 41 returnees reportedly arrived in Ghana on September 4.

On September 7, Mr Ablakwa announced a total evacuation cost of GH¢49,721,786, comprising direct government funding and support attributed to Engineers & Planners.

The Minority argues that the records must be sufficiently detailed to allow Parliament and the public to verify both the number of people transported and the expenditure incurred.

The alleged shortfall in flight documentation does not necessarily mean the passengers were not evacuated or that the associated funds were misused. A complete reconciliation by the Ministry and an independent auditor would be required to establish whether the records are incomplete or whether substantive discrepancies exist.


Story by: Andre Mustapha Nii Okai Inusah
Popularly Known As: Attractive Mustapha
Email: attractivemustapha@gmail.com
Contact Number 0244259564