Former Eastern Regional Minister, Seth Acheampong, has criticised President John Dramani Mahama for failing to draw lessons from the infamous “Gitmo 2” controversy during his first term in office.
His comments follow the government’s decision to accept a group of West African deportees from the United States without presenting the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to Parliament for ratification.
According to Mr Acheampong, President Mahama’s handling of international agreements remains problematic.
He recalled that during Mahama’s first term, his government accepted two Guantanamo Bay detainees without parliamentary approval—a move that later prompted a court order requiring the agreement to be submitted for ratification or risk having the detainees returned to the U.S.
Mr Acheampong said the government’s failure to follow proper procedures shows that “we are not learning as a country.”
“I think this shouldn’t have been a matter that we have to revisit because we have gone through this thing before. My whole concern about this conversation is about our governance and international relations practice, and so if in times past we had a similar situation and people felt we didn’t execute the international relations adequately and appropriately and took matters for interpretation, I was hoping history would guide us so that if it is brought before us, we just get ourselves around the practice smoothly.”
Mr Acheampong expressed disappointment that the same missteps were being repeated.
“It is becoming concerning because it’s happened in my senior brother John’s first term, and we are experiencing it in the second term. When it goes on and on, it is as if we are not learning anything as a country,” he stressed.
He further aligned himself with the Minority in Parliament, who have raised constitutional objections to the agreement.
“My colleagues in Parliament are saying that let’s do things right, and I believe in summary that is what they are asking us to do, and I hope that we eat humble pie,” Mr Acheampong added.
Meanwhile, the Minority caucus has called on government to suspend the deal, arguing that it violates Article 75 of the 1992 Constitution.
The provision requires that every treaty, agreement, or convention signed by or under the authority of the President must be laid before Parliament for ratification.
