“I’ll always defend my colleagues” – Ablakwa says over S.A. evacuation allegation

Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has defended the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its finance officers against allegations of financial irregularities in the evacuation of Ghanaians from South Africa.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, October 26, organised by some of the evacuees, Mr Ablakwa said he would continue to defend his reputation, the ministry and the officials responsible for managing the funds.

He insisted that no money had been misappropriated, despite media reports and allegations by the Minority in parliament regarding the disbursement of funds for the exercise.

Although he acknowledged that he did not personally distribute the reported GH¢5,500 to every evacuee, the minister expressed confidence in the work of the ministry's finance officers, maintaining that they had performed their duties diligently.

"Now, I will always defend my colleagues at the foreign ministry, even though I did not personally hand over these funds, but I know that the team at the finance directorate of my ministry, the NADMO team, the National Security team, these are all public servants of impeccable integrity and nobody will seek to take advantage of traumatised evacuees from another country," he said.

The press conference comes amid growing scrutiny of the government's expenditure on the evacuation exercise, following media fact-checks and claims by the Minority that not every evacuee received the reported GH¢5,500.

Questions have also been raised about discrepancies in the dates of birth recorded in some of the documents provided by the ministry, further intensifying calls for clarification on the payments and the documentation process.

The controversy centres on the transparency and accountability of the funds used to evacuate Ghanaians from South Africa, as well as the support reportedly provided to those who returned home.

Mr Ablakwa's defence is the latest development in the ongoing debate over the management of the exercise, with questions about the payments and supporting records remaining central to the public discussion.