GH¢49.72m Evacuation: Minority’s GH¢6.3m allowance gap claim flawed - What the data shows

The government’s expenditure of GH¢49.72 million on the evacuation and reintegration of Ghanaians from South Africa has come under scrutiny, following allegations of discrepancies in the financial records and the number of people transported. The exercise, which took place between May 27 and September 4, 2026, reportedly involved 1,964 Ghanaians. The Minority Caucus in Parliament, led by the Deputy Ranking Member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and Member of Parliament for Bosome-Freho, Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, has questioned aspects of the expenditure, demanding an independent public audit to establish how the funds were used and whether all beneficiaries received the support reported by the government. At a press conference on October 11, 2026, the Minority alleged that discrepancies in the passenger records, flight manifests and reintegration payments raised questions about more than GH¢16.4 million in expenditure. The caucus also cited concerns over incomplete or duplicated records and inconsistencies in the number of evacuees accounted for in the available documentation. However, the government has defended the expenditure, with Foreign Affairs Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, insisting that the funds were properly accounted for. He has maintained that the exercise cost GH¢49.72 million, comprising a government contribution of approximately GH¢33.72 million and GH¢16 million from Engineers and Planners. The competing claims have intensified calls for greater transparency and an independent examination of the evacuation accounts. But how accurate is the account? What do the figures say? Is the government's GH¢10.8 million expenditure on reintegration and transport allowances accurate? According to a breakdown of the GH¢49.72 million expenditure on the evacuation provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, about GH¢38.8 million was spent on flights, ground transport, feeding, accommodation and medical care; GH¢10.8 million on reintegration and transport allowances; and GH¢84,000 on other expenses. But is the over GH¢10.8 million the government says it spent on reintegration and transport allowances accurate, given the number of people it says it evacuated? The government says it evacuated 1,964 Ghanaians from South Africa. Total reintegration allowance: The government says each evacuee received a reintegration allowance of GH¢5,000. Therefore, the total amount the government should have spent on reintegration allowances was GH¢9,820,000 (GH¢5,000 multiplied by 1,964 people). Total transport allowance: The government also said each evacuee received a transport allowance of GH¢500. Given the total number of evacuees, 1,964, the total transport allowance should have been GH¢982,000 (GH¢500 multiplied by 1,964 people). Therefore, the total amount the government claims to have spent on the two allowances appears consistent with the number of people it says were evacuated, although the available records require further examination. Is the Minority’s claim of missing GH¢6.3 million in allowances accurate? One of the main grounds cited in its claims of financial misappropriation is an alleged gap in the reintegration and transport allowances. The Minority claims that, using data it obtained from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it found a gap of approximately GH¢6.3 million in the allowances the government says it has paid. 'Voodoo Analysis!' – Ablakwa takes on Minority over GH¢49m SA evacuation claims Here is how the Minority arrived at its figure: The Minority Caucus, led by the MP for Bosome-Freho, says it found 1,708 entries in the register for the reintegration allowance and 1,001 in the transport allowance register in the data it obtained from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It also said that only 824 names appeared in both the reintegration allowance and transport allowance registers. It concluded that, since only 824 names could be matched, the allowances paid to the remaining 1,140 evacuees were questionable. It simply multiplied the 1,140 evacuees whose names it could not match by the total allowance per evacuee of GH¢5,500, which gave a total of GH¢6,270,000. What should the gap have been, given the shortfall in the names in the registers? The Minority’s claim of a GH¢6,270,000 gap in the total allowances appears to be grossly exaggerated or miscalculated. According to the data the Minority claims it received from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the total number of people on the register for the reintegration allowance was 1,708. Based on the figure of 1,708, the total amount paid in reintegration allowances should have been GH¢8,540,000, leaving a gap of GH¢1,280,000 from the original amount that should have been paid as reintegration allowances for the 1,964 evacuees. Also, based on the 1,001 evacuees the Minority says were on the transport allowance register, the total expenditure should have been GH¢500,500, indicating a shortfall of GH¢481,500. Therefore, the total shortfall should be GH¢1,761,500 and not the GH¢6,270,000 claimed by the Minority Caucus. Conclusion: The figures suggest that the Minority Caucus may have overstated the alleged gap in reintegration and transport allowances by using the number of unmatched names rather than calculating the shortfall in each register separately. Based on the figures it cited, the combined shortfall in the two registers is GH¢1,761,500, not GH¢6,270,000. However, the apparent error in the Minority’s calculation does not resolve the questions surrounding the evacuation expenditure. The differences between the number of evacuees reported by the government and the entries in the allowance registers, together with concerns about missing or incorrect biographical details and signatures, warrant further scrutiny. Ultimately, only an independent forensic audit can establish whether the GH¢49.72 million was properly accounted for, whether all eligible evacuees received their allowances and whether the expenditure reported by the government is supported by verifiable records. The focus should therefore be on reconciling the figures and establishing the facts, rather than treating either the government’s defence or the Minority’s allegations as conclusive. Aside from the discrepancies in the transport and reintegration allowances, which need to be investigated, there are also questions surrounding the other expenditure items in the over GH¢42 million spent on the evacuation that warrant investigation. The issues of incorrect biographical data, missing signatures and incorrect signatures cannot be overlooked either. BAI/VPO Guns and Drugs: Dr Adam Bonaa Warns of Growing Security Threat to Ghana Source: www.ghanaweb.com
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