The Minority in Parliament has called on the government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to publish the full expenditure incurred in evacuating Ghanaians from South Africa following recent xenophobic attacks.

The Member of Parliament for Bosome Freho and Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, has formally filed a Right to Information (RTI) request seeking details of the expenditure following the government’s announcement that it had fully funded the evacuation.

According to him, the Minority is seeking clarity on the actual cost of the exercise, particularly following the Foreign Affairs Minister’s claim that the evacuation was fully funded by the Ghanaian government with support from other partners.

He explained that the call for transparency had become necessary after the South African President subsequently made statements suggesting that countries and other entities that supported the evacuation could be required to account for or recover funds associated with the exercise.

Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh said the Minority therefore wants the government to disclose how much was spent by Ghana and how much was contributed by its partners.

“We want to know how much the Ghana government spent, how much the partners spent, and who exactly these partners and friends are that the government referred to,” he said.

He stressed that while the evacuation of Ghanaian nationals was a positive and necessary intervention, Parliament and the Ghanaian public deserved to know the actual figures involved.

“We believe that when public funds are used for an exercise of this nature, the Ghanaian people have a right to know the full cost and how those funds were utilised,” Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh said.

He further called for the government to provide details of any financial commitments made by external partners who supported the evacuation.

“If there were partners who contributed financially or otherwise to the evacuation, we want the government to tell us who they are, what they contributed, and under what arrangements those contributions were made,” he added.

He said the RTI request was aimed at ensuring transparency and accountability in the use of public funds, insisting that the evacuation itself was commendable but the financial details must be made public.