Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, has summoned Members of Parliament to an extraordinary sitting on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, at twelve noon at Parliament House in Accra. The notice, dated Thursday, September 24, 2026, was issued under Article 112(3) of the 1992 Constitution and Order 53 of the Standing Orders of Parliament.
The recall notice does not state the business the House will consider. It follows a petition from Minority Members of Parliament demanding urgent parliamentary scrutiny of a string of major cocaine and drug seizures linked to Ghana, including the recent interception of about 3.9 tonnes of cocaine in France.
Constitutional Basis for the Parliament Recall
Article 112(3) of the Constitution allows fifteen percent of Members of Parliament to request a meeting of the House. Once the Speaker receives such a request, the provision requires him to summon Parliament within seven days.
Order 53 of the Standing Orders of Parliament makes a similar provision for summoning the House when the required number of members make a request. Speaker Bagbin cited both provisions in his notice, the same legal basis the Minority relied on in its petition.
The Minority argued that the matters it raised could not wait for the House to resume sitting in the ordinary course, describing them as having serious implications for national security, public safety, institutional accountability and Ghana’s international reputation.
Minority Petition Centres on Cocaine Seizure in France
The petition, submitted by the First Deputy Minority Whip and Member of Parliament for Tolon, Hon. Habib Iddrisu, places the seizure at the Port of Dunkirk at the heart of its demands.
French customs officers reportedly intercepted nearly 3.9 metric tonnes of cocaine on September 10, 2026, concealed in a container of plastic waste that had departed Ghana. The consignment was valued at more than US$260 million.
The Minority says the scale of the seizure raises critical questions about the security of Ghana’s ports and export systems, customs controls, intelligence gathering and narcotics enforcement.
It wants Parliament to be told how the container was processed, cleared and exported, the port through which it left, and the companies and agencies involved in handling it. The petition also seeks updates on arrests, charges and cooperation between Ghanaian authorities and their French and international counterparts.
Minority Wants Ministers and Security Chiefs Before the House
The petition calls for a parliamentary inquiry involving the Ministers responsible for the Interior, Transport and National Security. It also names the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC), the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ghana Immigration Service and the National Intelligence Bureau.
The Minority wants these institutions to account for the adequacy of scanning, intelligence and surveillance systems at the country’s ports, airports and borders. It also wants to know what is being done to prevent Ghana from becoming a transit hub for international drug trafficking.
String of Drug Seizures Linked to Ghana
The petition situates the Dunkirk seizure within a wider pattern of incidents since 2025. On March 4, 2025, the National Intelligence Bureau reportedly intercepted more than 3.3 tonnes of cocaine hidden beneath sand in a tipper truck at Pedu Junction in Cape Coast, with an estimated street value exceeding US$350 million.
Within the same period, about 120 slabs of cocaine valued at roughly US$150 million were reportedly intercepted on the highway linking Takoradi and Cape Coast. On August 5, 2026, the Tema Regional Police Command reportedly seized 866 parcels of suspected cocaine concealed in sacks of gari at a warehouse in the Tema Harbour enclave.
Beyond Ghana’s borders, Australian customs authorities reportedly seized 320 kilogrammes of methamphetamine valued at about US$261 million on June 18, 2026, hidden in a charcoal consignment traced to Ghana. By the Minority’s estimates, major seizures linked to Ghana now exceed US$1 billion in less than two years.
Unresolved Cases Fuel Demand for Accountability
The Minority also points to cases it says remain unresolved. These include an aircraft alleged to have carried narcotics and undeclared US currency from Gran Canaria, which reportedly landed at Kotoka International Airport around March 20, 2025.
It further cites the MV Sankofa, a vessel reportedly found sailing under a forged flag. The Ghana Maritime Authority reportedly released it after payment of a fraction of a fine of nearly GH¢12 million, without fully inspecting its cargo, before authorities in Senegal arrested it carrying narcotics.
On the Pedu Junction case, the petition says only the driver, a housemaid and a few peripheral suspects have been arraigned, while the financiers and principal traffickers remain unidentified or unprosecuted.
The Minority insists its request is not an attack on law enforcement. “The purpose of this request is not to prejudge the guilt of any individual, interfere with ongoing criminal investigations, or undermine the work of law enforcement agencies,” the petition states.
What to Expect When Parliament Reconvenes
The petition asks the Speaker to facilitate deliberations, institute an inquiry where appropriate, and give Ministers and institutional heads the opportunity to brief the House on the incidents and the progress of investigations.
Whether Tuesday’s sitting takes up all of the Minority’s demands will become clear when the House sets its agenda. What is certain is that the recall places Ghana’s narcotics enforcement record squarely before Parliament at a moment of mounting international attention.
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