Afenyo-Markin accuses EOCO of targeting opponents after MP Baffour Awuah is held

Pinned summary · as of 06:31

Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has pressed the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) to turn its attention to the people who finance and organise drug trafficking linked to Ghana. His statement on 1 October came on the day Manhyia South MP Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah went to the agency's office and was held, in a probe tied to SIC Life Savings and Loans.

What we know

• Mr Afenyo-Markin, who is also the Effutu MP, challenged EOCO to go after the backers and organisers of drug trafficking networks connected to Ghana, and asked why an opposition legislator was getting so much attention by comparison.
• Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, the Manhyia South MP, presented himself to EOCO of his own accord to help with an inquiry that centres on dealings at SIC Life Savings and Loans, and the agency then held him.
• The Minority Leader accused EOCO of aiming its powers at political opponents and said its resources should instead be used against drug kingpins.
• Mr Afenyo-Markin alleged that the treatment of Mr Baffour Awuah is meant to intimidate critics of the government in the opposition, and said investigative powers should be used fairly and without political bias.
• Mr Afenyo-Markin said the MP was made to wait for hours despite coming forward voluntarily, and the Minority demanded his immediate and unconditional release.
• Mr Afenyo-Markin called on EOCO, together with the narcotics control commission, to trace the proceeds of crime and go after those who finance the drug trade, and pointed to cocaine seizures at Amsterdam and Dunkirk tied to Ghanaian shipments.

What's disputed / unconfirmed

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  MyJoyOnline reported that EOCO alleges the SIC Life inquiry covers unauthorised transactions, with money laundering, a suspected loss of funds and the squandering of public money among the alleged offences. It added that no court has ruled on these allegations, and that Mr Baffour Awuah is cooperating with investigators.
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  Citi Newsroom reported that Mr Baffour Awuah came forward on 1 October with his lawyer and fellow MPs after the Accra High Court issued a warrant allowing his arrest and searches for documents, and that EOCO informed the judge that every sensible route to getting him to attend voluntarily had been tried. Mr Afenyo-Markin, in the same report, questioned the basis for that claim and said the MP had passed EOCO's previous summonses on to Parliament's Clerk. No other report carries these details.
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  Rainbow Radio Online reported Mr Afenyo-Markin's claim that an EOCO official confronted Mr Baffour Awuah without a warrant on 23 September after he argued a bail application in court. It also reported his allegations that the government is slow to act against figures behind illegal mining, and his description of the current period as one of impunity. No other report carries these claims.
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  MyJoyOnline cited a JoyNews Research report that counted 11 cocaine cases among 28 drug busts since March 2025 and put the street value of seizures tied to Ghana at US$1.3 billion to US$1.7 billion. It also reported Mr Afenyo-Markin pointing to seizures at Antwerp and Pedu Junction in Ghana, as well as Amsterdam and Dunkirk.

Why it matters for Ghana

The row sets a high-profile investigation into a financial institution against wider public worry about Ghana's role in the cocaine trade. It tests how far anti-corruption and anti-narcotics agencies are trusted to act even-handedly across party lines. Savers and customers of financial firms, and anyone following the work of Parliament, will be watching what EOCO and the drug control agencies say in response.