Parliament is expected to turn its attention to Ghana’s port security and narcotics-control systems today, Tuesday, September 29, as lawmakers return for an extraordinary sitting following concerns over a series of major drug seizures linked to the country.
The sitting, summoned by Speaker Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin under Article 112(3) of the 1992 Constitution and the Standing Orders of Parliament, follows a petition initiated by the First Deputy Minority Whip and Member of Parliament for Tolon, Habib Iddrisu.
At the centre of the concerns is the seizure by French Customs of nearly 3.9 tonnes of cocaine at the Port of Dunkirk on September 10, 2026. The cocaine was reportedly concealed in a container carrying plastic waste that had departed from Ghana. French authorities have estimated the value of the consignment at about €225 million.
Rather than focusing solely on the seizure itself, the parliamentary process is expected to raise questions about how the consignment was able to leave Ghana undetected.
Lawmakers are expected to seek details about the exporter, freight-forwarding arrangements, customs procedures, scanning and inspection processes, intelligence profiling and the agencies that handled the container before it left the country.
The Minority has also filed a private members’ motion seeking the establishment of an Ad Hoc Committee to conduct a bipartisan inquiry into the various narcotics seizures linked to Ghana. The proposed inquiry would examine how the consignments were processed, inspected, cleared and exported, as well as the roles of companies and state institutions involved.
The inquiry is also expected to extend beyond the French cocaine seizure. The Minority has cited other major narcotics cases, including the reported seizure of 320 kilogrammes of methamphetamine in Australia and significant cocaine interceptions in Ghana since 2025.
Institutions whose activities could come under parliamentary scrutiny include the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC), Ghana Revenue Authority, Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority and national security agencies, alongside the relevant ministries.
Meanwhile, NACOC has already arrested three suspects in Ghana in connection with the Dunkirk cocaine shipment and said investigations into their alleged roles were ongoing.
The parliamentary exercise could therefore provide an opportunity for lawmakers to establish what is currently known about the shipments, identify possible weaknesses in existing systems and consider measures to strengthen Ghana’s capacity to detect and disrupt international narcotics trafficking.
The Speaker’s original notice summoning Parliament did not set out the detailed business for the sitting, but the recall follows directly from the Minority’s petition concerning the drug seizures.
With the House returning from recess, attention will now be on what information the relevant state institutions provide to Parliament and whether lawmakers proceed with a formal bipartisan investigation into the Ghana-linked narcotics cases.
