Samuel Abu Jinapor, Member of Parliament for Damongo and a member of Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Committee, has called on the government to submit the Ghana-U.S. deportee agreement to Parliament for ratification, following reports that a Salvadoran national would be deported to Ghana.
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, reportedly facing deportation from the United States, will not be sent to Ghana, a senior government official confirmed Friday.
The clarification followed an Oct. 10 report by ABC News that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) planned to deport Garcia under the Ghana-U.S. deportee agreement.
“The constitutional requirement that such agreements be laid before Parliament is intended to safeguard the sovereignty of our Republic and ensure that executive actions remain consistent with the rule of law,” Jinapor said in a social media post.
He added that parliamentary scrutiny would allow the public to understand the full details of the arrangement and promote transparency.
“It is for reasons such as these that the Minority has consistently called on the Government to lay the said agreement before Parliament for ratification, in accordance with Article 75 of our national Constitution. The constitutional requirement that such agreements be laid before Parliament for ratification is intended to safeguard the sovereignty of our Republic and ensure that the actions of the Executive remain consistent with the rule of law. It also provides an opportunity for the full details of this controversial arrangement to be properly presented to the nation.
“With Parliament set to resume on 21st October 2025, Government has a golden opportunity to uphold this constitutional requirement. We therefore reiterate our call on Government to take the necessary steps to lay the agreement before Parliament. Doing so will promote transparency, restore public confidence, and strengthen the principles of accountability that underpin our democratic governance”, Jinapor added
Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Ghana’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, said the agreement applies only to a limited number of non-criminal West Africans who may be received on humanitarian grounds, and not to criminal deportees.
Parliament is scheduled to resume on 21 October providing an opportunity for the government to present the agreement for ratification.
The Ghana-U.S. deportee agreement has faced scrutiny, with some suggesting it may be linked to recent U.S. visa concessions for Ghanaian citizens.