Who is checking our Ports?– Dr Frank Bannor questions security amid latest cocaine seizure

The New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Spokesperson on Economy and Finance, Dr Frank Bannor, has raised serious concerns about Ghana’s port security and cargo-screening systems following the seizure of 2,600 kilogrammes of cocaine shipped from Tema Port to Spain. Dr Bannor questioned how such a substantial quantity of narcotics could leave Ghana through one of the country’s major international entry and exit points without being intercepted locally, describing the development as a serious security concern that demands answers from the relevant authorities.

His comments follow the interception of approximately 2.6 tonnes of cocaine by Spanish law enforcement agencies at the Port of Valencia. The arrests were made as the cargo was being unloaded. Those detained were identified as the suspected importer of the drugs and the person responsible for supervising the unloading. Speaking on the JoyNews AM Show on Thursday, November 12, Dr Bannor questioned the effectiveness of the security arrangements at Ghana’s ports, particularly the ability of existing scanning equipment and inspection procedures to identify suspicious consignments before they leave the country.

He said the sheer volume of cocaine involved should prompt Ghanaians to reflect on the implications for national security and the country’s international reputation, arguing that 2,600 kilogrammes of narcotics passing through Tema Port raised fundamental questions about the country’s ability to monitor its borders. “It is important to know that we have 2,600 kilogrammes of cocaine transiting through a port like Tema Port.

Imagine 2,600 kilogrammes worth of any item. Imagine even having hand luggage filled with cocaine, weighing less than 20 kilogrammes,” he said. He questioned how such a large consignment could pass through Tema Port’s scanning systems without detection and subsequently reach another country, asking: “What kind of picture are we painting of our country?” Shipment passed through Tema before cocaine was discovered in Spain Dr Bannor also drew attention to the timeline contained in the investigative report released by Spanish authorities, particularly the fact that the containers had left Ghana months before the drugs were intercepted.

According to the report, the two containers were loaded at Tema Port on August 2, 2026, and arrived at the Port of Valencia in Spain on August 22, 2026. He argued that the timeline made the situation particularly troubling because the shipment had passed through Ghana’s international shipping processes before the cocaine was discovered abroad. “If you read the investigative report that was released yesterday, it said the shipment left Tema Port on 2 August.

So it is not like it did not go through our international borders. The necessary checkpoints where this cocaine should have been detected, it went through them, and it arrived in Spain and was busted 20 days later, according to the report,” he stated. He further questioned whether some individuals working within the port system could be facilitating the movement of illegal drugs, although he did not provide evidence implicating any particular official or institution.

“Is it that, for the purposes of illustration, certain people at our ports are complicit as far as this illicit drug transit is concerned?” he asked.