Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States says US Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed that former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta was medically fit to be held in a detention centre before he was admitted.

Victor Smith told Joy News’ PM Express on Monday that ICE arranged for medical personnel to assess Mr Ofori-Atta shortly after his arrest.

“Yes, the ICE people confirmed that he was all right. Initially, they had medical people to determine whether he was fit to be held in the detention centre, and they were convinced and were assured that he was okay,” he said.

Mr Smith said ICE informed him that although Mr Ofori-Atta was on medication, he was not seeing a doctor at the time and had access to his medication while in detention.

“He was on medication, but he wasn’t seeing any doctor at the time, and he had his medication, so he could be put in the detention centre,” he stated.

He added that the assessment was conducted by medical professionals attached to the detention facility, not by ICE officers.

“They had caused him to be assessed by the medical personnel, not themselves,” he said.

Mr Smith said ICE explained that detainees with serious medical conditions are usually referred to external medical facilities rather than kept in detention centres.

“If he had any serious medical conditions, maybe they would have referred him to a medical facility outside the detention centre,” he added.

The Ambassador also disclosed that Ghana’s embassy had made efforts to secure consular access to Mr Ofori-Atta but was unable to meet him because he refused to be visited without his lawyers present.

He said his involvement began after Mr Ofori-Atta had been picked up by ICE, prompting discussions with consular officers at the Ghanaian embassy.

“I discussed it with the consular officers of my embassy, and we decided to make a request to make sure that he was being treated properly, as per international protocols,” he said.

According to Mr Smith, ICE initially agreed to allow the embassy to visit the former minister, but the plan collapsed shortly before the visit.

“Just before we set out the ICE agents came again and said the detainee had refused to meet with us without his lawyers,” he said.

He explained that after waiting for several hours, ICE returned with a final response.

“After about a few hours, they came back to us to say the detainee, being the ex minister, had refused now to see us under any circumstances,” he said.

Mr Smith said ICE officers personally came to his office to relay the developments.

“The ICE agents came here. The representative came to my office,” he said.

He described the refusal as disappointing, given that no one had visited Mr Ofori-Atta at the time.

“We’re a bit of a disappointment, because I know Ken personally. He may not be my friend, but I know him personally,” he said.

“Being a Ghanaian and being our responsibility, so to speak, in a host country, I felt that if we had had the opportunity to at least hear about, if he had some concerns for us, to probably try and assist,” he added.

Mr Smith said the embassy respected Mr Ofori-Atta’s decision and did not pursue further attempts to visit him.

“So shutting the door in our face and not wanting to see us under any circumstances was a bit unfortunate,” he said.

Background

Former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta is currently in the custody of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement over questions relating to the status of his stay in the country.

His legal team has confirmed that he is cooperating fully with ICE while efforts are underway to resolve the matter.

According to a statement released by his lawyers, Mr Ofori-Atta has a pending petition for adjustment of status, a legal process under US law that allows an individual to remain in the country beyond the validity of an initial visa.

ICE is yet to announce a final decision on the matter.