Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has praised Ghana’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Benjamin Quarshie, for locating a Ghanaian who reportedly missed an updated evacuation notice amid ongoing plans to evacuate citizens from South Africa.

In a Facebook post, Mr Ablakwa described the High Commissioner as hardworking after he located Sylvester Boakye, who was said to be the only Ghanaian to report at the O.R. Tambo Airport on Wednesday following earlier evacuation communications.

“I commend Ghana’s hardworking High Commissioner to South Africa, H.E. Benjamin Quarshie for locating the young Ghanaian who missed out on our updated evacuation notice and was the only Ghanaian to report at the O.R. Tambo Airport yesterday,” the Minister stated.

According to him, Mr Boakye would not be excluded from the planned evacuation exercise expected to cover about 800 Ghanaians.

“The young Ghanaian by name Sylvester Boakye can be assured that he would not be left out of the planned evacuations expected to cover some 800 people,” he said.

Mr Ablakwa also assured that all Ghanaians who wish to return home would be catered for.

“No Ghanaian desirous of returning home would be left behind,” he added.

The Minister further used the occasion to dismiss reports claiming that Mr Boakye had already been evacuated to Ghana on a chartered flight.

He clarified that no evacuation flight had yet departed because Ghanaian authorities had agreed with South African officials to postpone the exercise pending legal, technical, and logistical arrangements.

“Clearly, Mr. Sylvester Boakye was not airlifted to Ghana as there was no chartered flight sent by the Government of Ghana due to an agreement with South African authorities to defer the evacuation pending the addressing of legal, technical and logistical matters,” he explained.

Mr Ablakwa described contrary reports as false, insisting that “truth stands; and truth always wins.”