Don’t just prosecute couriers, go after drug financiers – Catholic Bishops urges gov't

The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference (GCBC) has called on authorities to go beyond arresting drug couriers and trace the financiers, networks and businesses behind the illicit drug trade as part of efforts to tackle the increasing narcotics menace.

The Bishops said the recent seizure of nearly 3.9 tonnes of cocaine in France, allegedly concealed in a container of plastic waste from Ghana, had exposed the need for stronger investigations into how large consignments pass through legitimate commercial channels.

They also expressed concern about the reported involvement of people in positions of trust and called for investigations into public officials suspected of facilitating the movement of illicit drugs.

In a press statement issued on Monday, September 21, the Bishops said investigations must focus on the wider networks that finance and sustain the trade.

“A pattern in which couriers are prosecuted while the networks that finance them escape scrutiny is the failure any credible national response must overcome,” the statement read in part.

The Bishops urged the government to treat the drug menace as an urgent national concern and pursue a coordinated strategy involving the Police Service, Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC), Customs, port authorities, the judiciary and schools.

They called for stronger cooperation with INTERPOL and Europol to investigate transnational trafficking networks and locate wanted persons.

It said every public official reasonably suspected of complicity should be investigated regardless of rank.

The Bishops also backed calls for parliamentary scrutiny of Ghana’s systems for detecting and preventing narcotics trafficking through the country’s ports and airports.