By Nadia Ntiamoah
Thousands of supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) flooded the streets of Accra on Tuesday in a massive demonstration dubbed “Yɛgye Yɛ Sika”, demanding answers from the government over the controversial expenditure on the evacuation of Ghanaians from South Africa and the alleged irregular issuance of diplomatic and service passports.
The demonstrators as part of the action demanded the dismissal and prosecution of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa over his role in the multiple scandals.
Chanting “Y3gye y3 sika” (we want our money), the protesters were demanding accountability over spending on the evacuation of Ghanaians from South Africa and over the issuance of diplomatic and service passports.
At Jubilee House, the NPP National Youth Organiser, Abanga Fusani Yakubu, presented a petition addressed to President John Dramani Mahama and gave the President 14 days to act.
Addressing the crowd, Commander Yakubu said the turnout showed the depth of public anger over the matter.
“Behind me stand thousands of Ghanaians. Young men and women. Traders, students, workers, the unemployed,” he said. “They have marched peacefully today with one message: Y3gye y3 sika. We want our money accounted for.”
He told the gathering: “We are giving President Mahama 14 days to act; else we will stage another demonstration.”
The petition calls on the President to sack Ablakwa immediately and to direct the Attorney-General and the Office of the Special Prosecutor to investigate and prosecute him and any official found culpable.
It also demands the publication of the original invoices, contracts and proof of payment for all charter flights, the full passenger and beneficiary lists, an independent audit of the evacuation spending, and details of every diplomatic and service passport issued since January 2025.
Copies of the petition were addressed to the Speaker of Parliament, the Attorney-General, the Special Prosecutor and the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps.
“This is not the end. It is the beginning,” Abanga Yakubu told the crowd. “We will watch. We will wait fourteen days. And if there is no answer, we will be back, peacefully and lawfully, until every cedi is accounted for.”
The turnout reportedly exceeded expectations, with large numbers of party supporters, particularly members of the NPP youth wing, joining the protest to express their displeasure over what they described as a lack of transparency and accountability in the management of public funds.
The demonstration, which attracted considerable public attention, saw protesters dressed predominantly in black and red marching through parts of the capital, carrying placards with messages demanding accountability from
Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa and the government.Some of the placards bore inscriptions such as “Chobo hene Ablakwa, give us our money” and “We need accountability”, reflecting the anger among demonstrators over the financial questions surrounding the South Africa evacuation exercise.
The protesters began their march from the Accra Mall, proceeding towards the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before heading to Jubilee House, where they presented their concerns and demand answers from the government.
The demonstration, which has become one of the opposition’s latest public confrontations with the Mahama administration, centred on two major issues: the reported GH¢16.4 million discrepancy in the expenditure on the evacuation of Ghanaians from South Africa and concerns over the issuance of diplomatic and service passports since January 2025.
At the heart of the protest is the evacuation exercise involving 1,964 Ghanaians from South Africa following concerns over their safety and reported xenophobic attacks.
The NPP protesters are demanding a detailed account of the funds allocated to the operation, insisting that the government must explain the reported GH¢16.4 million discrepancy and provide documentary evidence to establish how public money was spent.
They are calling for the publication of original invoices, contracts and proof of payment for all chartered flights used during the evacuation exercise.
The demonstrators are also demanding the release of the complete passenger manifest and beneficiary list to enable the public to independently verify the number of Ghanaians evacuated and establish those who benefited from the exercise.
Beyond the documentation, the protesters want an independent audit of the total expenditure to determine how much was actually spent, whether the payments correspond with the services provided and whether any financial irregularities occurred.
The controversy has generated political tension between the government and the opposition, with the NPP insisting that the questions surrounding the evacuation expenditure cannot be dismissed without a full public account.
The second major issue raised during Tuesday’s demonstration concerned the issuance of diplomatic and service passports.
The protesters want the government to publish details of all diplomatic and service passports issued since January 2025, including the official positions or qualifying status of recipients and the authorities responsible for approving them.
They are also demanding the cancellation of any passports found to have been issued contrary to the applicable regulations.
The NPP argues that diplomatic and service passports are official state documents whose issuance must be guided by clear eligibility requirements and established procedures, rather than political considerations or personal connections.
The scale of Tuesday’s demonstration appeared to challenge expectations about the opposition’s ability to mobilise large numbers of supporters against the government over the two controversies.
The presence of thousands of demonstrators turned parts of Accra into a sea of party colours and placards, sending a strong public message that the NPP intends to keep pressure on the government over the evacuation expenditure and passport issues.
Although the protest was organised by the NPP youth wing, its demands extended beyond the evacuation exercise to broader concerns about the management of public resources, transparency in government transactions and accountability within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The South Africa evacuation controversy has remained a subject of political debate, particularly over the financial records and the figures presented in relation to the operation. The Minority in Parliament has also previously called for accountability, including demands for answers over the expenditure and the circumstances surrounding the evacuation.
The protesters maintain that their demands are not simply political accusations but questions that require documentary answers. They insist that publishing the relevant financial records, passenger details and passport issuance information would help resolve public concerns and establish whether the processes followed were consistent with the law.
