197% jump in drug arrests proof of stronger enforcement under NDC – Majority

James Agalga, the Majority Leader and NDC Member of Parliament (MP) for Builsa North

The National Democratic Congress Majority Caucus in Parliament has called for stronger collaboration among security and law enforcement agencies to dismantle drug trafficking networks operating in Ghana.

The Caucus, therefore, attributed the sharp increase in recent narcotics arrests and seizures to strategic reforms under the National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration.

Addressing a press conference in Parliament House on Thursday, September, Mr James Agalga, the Majority Leader and NDC Member of Parliament (MP) for Builsa North, said the growing complexity of the narcotics trade required a coordinated national response involving institutions responsible for border security, intelligence, investigations, prosecution, port operations and asset recovery.

“The Majority Caucus urges all security and law enforcement agencies, particularly the Narcotics Control Commission, the Ghana Police Service, the Ghana Immigration Service, the Ports and Harbours Authority and others, to increase cooperation and present one front to combat the emergence of drug networks in our country,” he said.

Mr Agalga said no single institution had the capacity to tackle the entire drug trafficking chain alone, stressing that intelligence sharing and joint operations are critical.

He said: “This is no job for any single agency. Profiling and screening, investigation, prosecution and asset recovery are all critical elements in the chain, and only when agencies are better coordinated, sharing intelligence and working together can Ghana really disrupt and dismantle networks that traffic narcotics.

The Majority Caucus called for continued and concerted inter-agency cooperation as the bedrock of the nation’s struggle against the drug menace.

The Majority Leader defended the government’s record in the fight against narcotics, citing enforcement data from the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC).

Mr Agalga disclosed that NACOC recorded 73 arrests nationwide in 2024, which was then its highest annual figure, but increased to 217 arrests across 165 cases in 2025.

“In 2024, NACOC recorded 73 arrests nationwide. In 2025, NACOC enforcement operations produced 217 arrests across 165 cases, an increase of 197 per cent. So let’s compare the figures: 73 arrests versus 217 arrests. In percentage terms, we are looking at a 197 per cent increase,” he said.

He said the 2025 performance was due to concrete institutional changes introduced by the government, including the expansion of NACOC’s District Commands from fewer than 10 to 77, extending its presence to all 16 regions.

He added that stronger collaboration with the Ghana Police Service, National Intelligence Bureau, Ghana Immigration Service and the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) had supported intelligence-led operations.

According to the Majority Leader, NACOC also seized 1,497.75 kilogrammes of narcotic substances in 2025 at an estimated street value of US$5.24 million, alongside 61,974 units of controlled substances, including pharmaceutical opiates and new psychoactive substances.

Asset-based enforcement operations, he said, resulted in the seizure of GH¢6.93 million and US$440,382 in cash, as well as 19.72 kilogrammes of gold allegedly linked to suspected drug-money laundering.

Mr Agalga said the government had also established a dedicated narcotics court to address fragmentation in the prosecution of drug cases and help close the gap between arrests and convictions.

“The 2025 performance was due to the concrete institutional changes this government has put in place,” he emphasised.

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