Seth Acheampong, a former Eastern Regional Minister, has criticised President John Dramani Mahama for not learning anything from his previous term after the “Gitmo 2” controversy.
Speaking on Breakfast Daily on Channel One TV on Thursday, September 25, 2025, Seth Acheampong stated, “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.”
“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.
Mr Acheampong added,“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”.
It will be recalled that President John Mahama, speaking to the media some weeks ago, revealed that some 14 US deportees arrived in Ghana, with several of them being Nigerians and a Gambian.
He cited the regional bloc Ecowas’s free movement protocol that allows citizens of member states to enter other West African countries without a visa for up to 90 days.
John Mahama further revealed that Ghana had already facilitated the return of the Nigerians to their country, while the Gambian was still being assisted.
He stated, “We were approached by the US to accept third-party nationals who were being removed from the US. And we agreed with them that West African nationals were acceptable”.
“The government of Ghana took the principled and humanitarian decision to accept the limited number of West African nationals deported from the United States under exceptional circumstances, in line with Ghana’s long-standing Pan-African ideals and unwavering commitment to regional solidarity,” President Mahama stated.
He added, “Our decision is grounded purely on humanitarian principles and Pan-African solidarity to offer temporary refuge where needed, to prevent further human suffering, and to maintain our credibility as a responsible regional actor. Ghana’s decision must be understood as an act of Pan-African empathy. It is not transactional like Rwanda, Eswatini, Uganda, or South Sudan”.
Mahama, however, clarified that the arrangement should not be seen as an endorsement of President Donald Trump’s new U.S. immigration policies.
Meanwhile, Franklin Cudjoe, the president of policy think tank IMANI Africa, has weighed in on the brouhaha surrounding the 14 US deportees arriving in Ghana.
According to Franklin Cudjoe, Ghana has become dangerously xenophobic and quizzed what was wrong with the government accepting West African neighbours who have been deported.
In a social media post on X, Franklin Cudjoe wrote, “What even beats my mind is how dangerously xenophobic we have become. What is wrong with accepting our neighbours who, admittedly, wrongly overstayed their visas and have been brought here? And they are not proven hardened criminals. Why all this viciousness? What is wrong with some of you?”
The IMANI president noted, “Every day, thousands of our West African neighbours enter Ghana through our porous borders illegally. Have we accounted for them? You are lucky these harmless West African deportees are officially being ‘dumped’ here, who can all be identified and fed by whoever is sending them here. And you call yourselves Christians and Muslims? Ever heard of the story of the Good Samaritan in the bible?”
“Stop it already!!”, he boldly added.
However, the Minority caucus has urged the government to suspend the deal, arguing that it violates Article 75 of the Constitution.
They highlighted that 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.