The Minority in Parliament has accused the government of showing “blatant disregard” for the other arms of government by agreeing with the United States to receive third-country nationals without seeking parliamentary approval.

At a press conference on Wednesday, September 24, the Minority said the deal undermines the authority of Parliament and violates Article 75 of the 1992 Constitution, which requires that any treaty, agreement, or convention with another country must be ratified by Parliament before implementation.

“The fact that we the minority members on the Foreign Affairs Committee had to learn of this development in the media is very concerning, and is consistent with attempts by the Executive to disregard the other arms of Government,” the caucus stressed.

The Minority described the government’s decision as “a repeat of past unconstitutional acts,” recalling the 2016 Guantanamo Bay detainee case in which the Supreme Court ruled that government’s action was unconstitutional because the agreement had not been ratified by Parliament.

They also cited the Banful v. Attorney-General case, where the Court held that every agreement between Ghana and another state, regardless of its form, requires parliamentary approval.

“It is, therefore, surprising that the current Government, which superintended over this unconstitutional act that was pronounced upon by the Supreme Court, would once again enter into a similar agreement with the same United States and proceed to receive foreign nationals into our country, pursuant to the said agreement, without regard to the clear constitutional requirement,” the Minority said.

The caucus expressed alarm that despite legal and constitutional concerns, government was preparing to receive more deportees.

“We have learnt that some of these foreign nationals are being held in detention centres against their wishes, and have gone ahead to institute legal action against the Government for breaches of their fundamental human rights.

"Despite this, we are told that some 40 more people are due to arrive in the country pursuant to this same unconstitutional agreement.”

The Minority reiterated that the government must suspend the arrangement immediately until Parliament has exercised its constitutional mandate. They further called for transparency on the processes and safeguards in place, warning that the deal raises wider concerns about sovereignty, security, and Ghana’s foreign policy posture.