Ablakwa rejects claims that evacuees were underpayed, accuses media reports of tarnishing his office

• Ablakwa says all 1,964 evacuees received GH¢5,000 in reintegration support and GH¢500 for transportation.

• The Minority is seeking an independent audit of the GH¢49.72 million evacuation exercise, citing discrepancies in expenditure records.

Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has rejected claims that some Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa received GH¢2,000 instead of the GH¢5,500 support package announced by the government.

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Ablakwa said all 1,964 Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa, including children and infants, received GH¢5,000 in reintegration support and GH¢500 for transportationHe added that his ministry has not received a single complaint about underpayment in more than four months.

Speaking to the Ghanaian community in Ottawa, Canada, during an official visit, he questioned why allegations of underpayment were emerging months after the evacuees had received their money at the airport.

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Ablakwa said the evacuees were informed about the allowances before leaving South Africa and were reminded of the amounts when they arrived in Ghana.

He explained that the money was distributed envelopes at the airport, where beneficiaries were encouraged to open them and check the amounts. He added that journalists and bloggers were present during the distribution.

Although Ablakwa acknowledged that he did not personally hand out the money, he defended the officials involved in the exercise, saying he did not believe they would take advantage of vulnerable Ghanaians returning from a difficult situation abroad.

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The minister’s comments also come amid the Minority’s call for an independent audit of the GH¢49.72 million spent on the evacuation exercise.

The Minority has alleged that more than GH¢16.4 million in expenditure requires further explanation, citing concerns over payment records, flight details and possible discrepancies in the documents supplied by the ministry.