Drug lords have established laboratories in Ghana – Nana B alleges

The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has alleged that international drug traffickers have established clandestine laboratories in the country, accusing the government of failing to prevent Ghana from being used as a transit point for narcotics.

NPP National Organiser Henry Nana Boakye made the allegation at a press conference on Tuesday as authorities investigate a series of major drug trafficking cases linked to Ghana.

“These drug lords, they have established basic laboratories here for processing of illicit drugs and narcotics under the watch of President Mahama,” Boakye said.

“And it appears that he doesn’t care,” he added.

Boakye provided no evidence at the press conference to substantiate the claim about laboratories or allegations that government officials were facilitating the movement of narcotics.

He said the alleged local processing was behind repeated international seizures of drugs linked to Ghana.

“That is the reason why volumes of drugs traced to Ghana keep surfacing in the folds of ships and the luggage of passengers in Sydney, Dunkirk and Johannesburg,” he said.

His comments came after French customs seized nearly 3.9 tonnes of cocaine at the port of Dunkirk on September 10 from a container carrying plastic waste that had arrived from Ghana. The shipment was valued at about €225 million ($261 million), according to reports on the seizure.

Four Ghanaians have been charged in Ghana in connection with the shipment and remanded in custody, while Dutch national Jos Leijdekkers, also known as “Bolle Jos”, has been named in the case and remains at large, according to reports. The allegations against those charged have not been proved in court.

Boakye also referred to the 2014 arrest of Ghanaian Nayele Ametefe in Britain after she was found with cocaine, citing the case as evidence of what he described as a recurring pattern under administrations of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC).

“Ghanaians have not forgotten the Naa Ayele Ametefe scandal under the first Mahama administration where this drug trafficker was afforded the courtesy of the VVIP wing at the Kotoka International Airport before her arrest at Heathrow with cocaine in her bags,” he said.

“Today, under the second Mahama term, the same pattern has resurfaced. The same process has remained, and it has grown to be much worse,” he added.

Boakye said the NPP had identified at least four major drug interceptions involving Ghana, including cases inside the country and consignments intercepted abroad.

“This is not an isolated embarrassment; it is a pattern. And patterns demand accountability,” he said.

The allegations come as Ghanaian authorities face increased scrutiny over how large quantities of narcotics have allegedly passed through the country’s export and security systems.

The government has said it is strengthening controls following the recent seizures. Acting Commissioner of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority Aaron Kanor said authorities were reviewing procedures and improving cooperation between agencies involved in narcotics detection and export controls.

The NPP has separately called for officials within the security and drug-interdiction chain to be held accountable over the recent cases.

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