Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin has ruled inadmissible a Private Member’s Motion seeking a bipartisan parliamentary inquiry into major narcotics seizures involving consignments linked to Ghana.
The ruling was delivered during an emergency sitting of Parliament on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, after the motion, filed by First Deputy Minority Whip and Tolon MP Habib Iddrisu, was presented for consideration.
Mr Bagbin said the proposed inquiry substantially overlapped with ongoing criminal investigations and judicial proceedings.
He explained that allowing the inquiry to proceed could require Parliament to examine evidence, hear witness testimony and assess the conduct of individuals and institutions in matters already before the courts.
“The proposed parliamentary enquiry will traverse factual matters directly connected with matters presently engaging the criminal justice process,” Mr Bagbin said.
He added that the proposed inquiry could result in Parliament determining issues that were properly within the jurisdiction of the courts.
“The combined effect of undertaking this evaluation, assessment and investigation would be, at the end of the day, to determine the very issues that the Court of Competent Jurisdiction is supposed to determine,” he said.
Mr Bagbin consequently ruled the motion inadmissible under Parliament’s Standing Orders, citing the risk that the proposed inquiry could prejudice parties involved in pending court cases.
Proposed scope of inquiry
The motion, filed on September 28, sought a bipartisan investigation into what the Minority described as systemic failures in the clearing and export of major narcotics consignments from Ghana.
It cited the seizure of about 3.9 metric tonnes of cocaine at Dunkirk in France on September 10, 2026, and the seizure of 320 kilogrammes of methamphetamine in Australia in June 2026.
The proposed inquiry was to examine how the consignments were processed, inspected, cleared and exported, as well as the roles of companies, state agencies and other entities involved.
It was also expected to examine security systems at Ghana’s ports and other entry and exit points, the status of investigations and prosecutions, and cooperation between Ghanaian authorities and international law-enforcement agencies.
Mr Bagbin said information available to him indicated that several substantive narcotics-related cases connected to matters covered by the proposed inquiry were pending before the courts.
Minority challenges ruling
Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin rejected the Speaker’s reasoning, arguing that the existence of pending criminal cases should not prevent Parliament from examining institutional conduct and possible systemic failures.
He maintained that the proposed inquiry was intended to focus on institutional accountability rather than determine the criminal liability of individuals before the courts.
“Mr Speaker therefore got it wrong by using existing pending criminal proceedings to determine the scope and manner of the inquiry,” Mr Afenyo-Markin said.
The Minority Leader said the caucus would explore other constitutional avenues to pursue the matter.
Following the ruling, Mr Bagbin adjourned Parliament indefinitely.
