The Deputy Ranking Member on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee and Bosome Freho MP, Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, has criticised the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, over remarks suggesting Ghana collaborated with the United States in operations against ISIS targets in Nigeria.

According to the lawmaker, the Minister’s public comments on the matter could expose Ghana to potential security threats, particularly at a time when extremist groups remain active in several countries within the West African sub-region.

His concerns follow the Minority in Parliament's demand that the Foreign Affairs Minister appear before the House to provide clarification following disclosures he reportedly made during a speech at Chatham House in London.

The Bosome Freho MP argued that references to Ghana’s alleged involvement in operations against the extremist group could make the country a potential target for retaliatory attacks.

“We are much more concerned about the issue; the comment the Minister for Foreign Affairs, the chief diplomat of the country, will expose us to. Look, we have ISIS in Togo, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Nigeria — all around."

"So for you to mention that your platform, Ghana, was used as a point and basis to launch into Nigeria against ISIS, then you are exposing the entire country to these very people we are fighting against as a continent,” he said.

Mr Asafo-Adjei Ayeh further stressed that matters relating to national security operations should be handled with strict confidentiality, particularly by officials who are privy to sensitive intelligence.

“These things are very confidential information that he was privy to as a member of the national security architecture of this country. I do not think that the acting Defence Minister or the Interior Minister will say this anywhere,” he stated while speaking on Channel One TV.

During his address at Chatham House, Ablakwa reportedly disclosed that the Nigerian government had invited the United States to conduct airstrikes against ISIS targets in Sokoto State as part of efforts to combat the extremist group.

He also indicated that both Nigeria and the United States had reached out to Ghana to collaborate on the wider counter-terrorism initiative, a disclosure that has since prompted calls from the Minority for further explanation of Ghana’s role in the operation.