The Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has rejected allegations that Bosome Freho Member of Parliament Nana Asafo Adjei Ayeh lobbied Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa to secure a service passport for New Patriotic Party (NPP) Second Vice Chairman Henry Nana Boakye, popularly known as Nana B.
Mr Jinapor has described the allegations as a diversionary attempt, arguing that they risk shifting public attention away from the Minority’s demand for an independent audit of expenditure incurred during Ghana’s evacuation of citizens from South Africa.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Tuesday, October 13, Mr Jinapor maintained that Nana B had never possessed a diplomatic passport and had surrendered his service passport in compliance with a directive issued by the new administration.
“Let me say that that allegation is a complete diversionary tactic, and it’s a rule in the old book, you know it, I know it, and we should not allow ourselves to be distracted,” he said.
Mr Jinapor disclosed that he had spoken with Mr Asafo Adjei Ayeh, who reportedly explained that Nana B had submitted a formal request for a valid visa in his previous passport to be transferred to a replacement passport.
“He had a valid visa in the passport, and he made a requisition, a formal requisition, that the visa be transferred to his new passport, which the minister committed to work on,” Mr Jinapor explained.
According to the ranking member, Mr Asafo Adjei Ayeh subsequently followed up with the Foreign Affairs Minister on one occasion and was informed that the request was still being processed. He said the Bosome Freho legislator did not pursue the matter further after receiving that response.
The clarification comes after members of the Majority Caucus on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee accused Mr Asafo Adjei Ayeh of attempting to influence Mr Ablakwa to permit Nana B to retain a service passport that the Majority claims he was not eligible to hold.
Salaga South Member of Parliament Hajia Zuwera Mohammed Ibrahimah made the allegation, asserting that Mr Asafo Adjei Ayeh and Nana B had sought an exemption from the minister.
She further claimed that Mr Ablakwa rejected the request because Nana B’s previous positions as the NPP’s National Youth Organiser and Board Chairman of the National Food Buffer Stock Company did not meet the requirements for obtaining a service passport.
Mr Jinapor also dismissed suggestions that the passport controversy should be connected to the Minority’s examination of spending on the evacuation of Ghanaian nationals from South Africa. He insisted that the Minority had not accused the Foreign Affairs Minister of wrongdoing.
The dispute has brought renewed attention to the distinction between diplomatic and service passports, the eligibility criteria governing their issuance and the competing accounts surrounding the request involving Nana B.
It has also intensified the political disagreement between the Majority and Minority caucuses over the handling of the South Africa evacuation expenditure, with the Minority maintaining that an independent audit is necessary to establish accountability for the public funds involved.
While the Majority has raised questions about the alleged passport lobbying, Mr Jinapor insists that the allegations should not divert attention from the financial scrutiny being pursued by the Minority.
The competing claims remain central to the dispute, with the Majority’s allegations and the Minority’s response presenting different accounts of the circumstances surrounding the passport request.
