Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has challenged the Minority in Parliament to identify a Ghanaian evacuated from South Africa who did not receive the government’s GH¢5,500 reintegration allowance, dismissing allegations of unaccounted funds as an attempt to manufacture a scandal.
The government evacuated Ghanaians from South Africa following heightened anti-immigrant sentiment and attacks targeting foreign nationals in the country.
Mr Ablakwa said the operation ended on September 4, 2026, after three days, and that he briefed the press on September 7 to account for the exercise.
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Responding to concerns about the management of the evacuation, the minister questioned claims that some individuals on the beneficiary list could not be traced and that funds allocated for the operation remained unaccounted for.
“All of that propaganda out there that some people on the list cannot be found and that some voodoo analysis they have done showed that there’s some money that has not been accounted for,” he said.
Mr Ablakwa insisted that the government had paid the allowances to the evacuees and challenged critics to produce evidence of anyone who had been denied the support.
“I have been looking for one Ghanaian to step forward and say that when we were evacuated from South Africa, the 5,500 Cedi reintegration allowance I didn’t get it as a Ghanaian. Or the 500 Cedi transportation allowance, I didn’t get it. Have you heard of any one Ghanaian? One,” he said.
The minister also questioned the basis for the controversy surrounding the exercise, insisting that allegations of financial impropriety were unfounded.
“So what is this desperate attempt to create a scandal when there is none?” he asked.
The dispute follows scrutiny of the evacuation programme, particularly questions about beneficiaries listed for assistance, the disbursement of allowances and whether public expenditure has been fully accounted for.
While Mr Ablakwa maintains that the payments were made, the Minority has raised concerns about individuals whose whereabouts and beneficiary status have been questioned.
The disagreement has placed the management of the evacuation and the accountability of public funds at the centre of the political debate.
The minister’s challenge sets the stage for further scrutiny of the government’s records as the competing claims over the evacuation continue.