Bernard Ahiafor, First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, has rebuked the Member of Parliament for Old Tafo, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, over his question on the warrant used in a raid on the residence of former Bank of Ghana Governor, Dr. Ernest Addison.
During Parliament proceedings, Assafuah queried Interior Minister Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka about the controversial search, seeking clarity on whether the warrant permitted searches of household items such as fridges or personal belongings.
“Honorable Minister, I would want to confirm from you, and maybe for purposes of education, you indicated to us that the National Security secured a search warrant. May you indicate to me the scope of the search warrant, if it is inclusive of search and phrases of persons. If it is inclusive of search and phrases of persons, I want to understand the scope of such a search” Assafuah asked.
Deputy Speaker Ahiafor, who was presiding, sharply criticised the line of questioning, suggesting it was unbecoming of a lawmaker, particularly one with a legal background.
“Thank you. Your question is whether or not the search warrant includes such in what? But if you are a lawyer, you’ve seen a search warrant before. Does the search warrant specify that you search the pocket or what? That is why, you see, Honorable Assaufuah, if this question were to be coming from a non-lawyer, but you have seen a copy of a search warrant before. If a warrant is issued to search your house, the warrant do not specify whether the search pocket of all your searches, your pocket, your fridge, your kitchen, or is that the content of the warrant? Please, if you,” he stated pointedly.
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Despite the rebuke, Assafuah insisted the question was fair and directed at the Minister for clarification, stating, “Mr. Speaker, I think this is all fair. Mr. Speaker, it’s a direct question that is addressed to the Minister. I want to understand the scope, the particular search warrant that he got. Is it inclusive of the search and phrases of persons? That is the question I’m asking. So you should just let me know that maybe if you just.”
The verbal exchange came against the backdrop of continued controversy over the March 19, 2025, raid on Dr. Addison’s Roman Ridge residence in Accra.
According to reports, about 20 armed men—some masked and led by Richard Jakpa, Director of Special Operations at the National Security Secretariat—stormed the property with AK-47 rifles, disabled the CCTV system, and demanded access to supposed vaults.
Dr. Addison denied the existence of any vaults or stashed cash, and although the property was thoroughly searched, no vaults or significant amounts of money were found. The operatives reportedly left with the CCTV monitor and control unit.
Speaking in Parliament on Tuesday, June 3, Interior Minister Muntaka defended the operation, stressing that it was legally sanctioned and conducted under a valid court-issued search warrant.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/Hamdia Mohammed
