By Nana Yaw Prekoh

Copyright ghanaguardian

A new controversy has erupted within the foreign affairs front as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, reportedly removed the Deputy Ranking Member on the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee, Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, from the country’s delegation to the ongoing United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.

Tradition of Bipartisan Representation Broken

Over the years, it has been customary for Ghana’s delegation to the UNGA to include both the Chairman and the Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee.

This arrangement reflects a bipartisan approach to international diplomacy, ensuring that both the Majority and Minority sides of Parliament are represented on such global platforms.

For the 2025 UNGA, the Ranking Member, Samuel Abu Jinapor, had ceded his slot to his deputy, Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, a move that would have allowed the Bosome Freho MP to participate in the sessions.

On the Majority side, Okoh Vandapuye was selected. In an unusual twist, however, the committee’s clerk was also added to the travel list — raising eyebrows when it later emerged that Ayeh had been excluded at the very last minute.

A Shocking Airport Revelation

Sources close to Parliament reveal that Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh had prepared for the trip and was at the Kotoka International Airport when he was told at the airline counter that his name was no longer on the official list. Attempts to verify the sudden development revealed a message from the Foreign Minster’s office.

According to Ablakwa’s personal assistant, the Ministry could only cover the costs of two participants: Okoh Vandapuye and the committee clerk.

What has baffled observers is that Ayeh’s flight ticket had already been purchased, and his per diem allowance had even been handed to the clerk to pass on to him.

This contradiction has fueled speculation that financial constraints were not the true reason behind his exclusion.

A Pattern of Tensions Between the Two MPs

The strained relationship between Ablakwa and Asafo-Adjei Ayeh is not new.

In May 2025, the Bosome Freho legislator publicly criticized the Foreign Minister’s handling of the scandal that rocked Ghana’s Washington Embassy, where irregularities led to its temporary closure.

Again, in July 2025, Ayeh held another press conference questioning the government’s relaunch of the chip-embedded passport system and raising concerns about the welfare of Ghanaians in Togo amid political unrest.

Later that same month, Ayeh filed a formal question in Parliament demanding the Minister’s response on issues he had earlier flagged.

Reports indicate that Okudzeto Ablakwa confronted him angrily, questioning why he had gone to the media before filing his parliamentary query.

The tension deepened when Ayeh led a fact-finding mission to Vonkoro, where his revelations allegedly contradicted Okudzeto Ablakwa’s earlier assurances about conditions in Ghanaian refugee camps.