KEY POINTS

• Kofi Tonto questions the alleged GH¢27 million spent on chartered evacuation flights.

• The Minority says records reviewed list 1,173 passengers against 1,964 reported evacuees.

• Calls grow for receipts, payment registers and clarification of the 791-passenger discrepancy.

Kofi Tonto, spokesperson on employment for the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Policy Committee, has questioned the expenditure on a recent evacuation exercise, demanding receipts to account for the money spent on chartered flights.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, Tonto alleged that GH¢27 million of the GH¢49 million spent on the exercise went towards chartering aircraft.

He claimed that Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa had failed to provide receipts despite several requests, raising questions about the documentation supporting the expenditure.

Tonto also criticised people defending the handling of the exercise, describing the situation as concerning.

The allegations add to growing scrutiny of the evacuation exercise, with the parliamentary Minority also questioning discrepancies between the number of evacuees reported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the passenger records it has examined.

Minority questions passenger figures

Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, previously raised concerns about differences between the Ministry’s reported evacuation figures and the passenger information contained in documents made available for review.

According to the Minority, its examination identified 1,173 passengers in the records it reviewed, compared with the Ministry’s reported total of 1,964 evacuees.

The difference amounts to 791 passengers whose entries the Minority says require clarification.

The figures have prompted calls for the Ministry to explain how the total number of evacuees was calculated and reconcile the reported figure with the available passenger documentation.

The discrepancy, however, does not by itself establish that the reported evacuees were not transported, as further explanations and supporting records would be needed to determine the reason for the gap.

Calls for receipts and payment records

The Minority has called for additional information on the evacuation exercise, including passenger records, payment registers and documents supporting the reported expenditure.

Tonto’s demand for receipts focuses specifically on the alleged GH¢27 million spent on chartered aircraft. He has argued that the public should be able to examine the documentation supporting the use of public funds.

The controversy has placed renewed attention on the need for transparent accounting of evacuation costs and accurate passenger records.

The Ministry’s response to the specific allegations, including Tonto’s claim that receipts have not been provided, was not included in the report.

Further clarification from the Ministry would be needed to establish the full cost breakdown, reconcile the passenger figures and determine whether all expenditure was properly documented.