Cocaine must not become Ghana's next security front

I am deeply saddened and alarmed by what is unfolding in Ghana now.

We have seen this playbook before with galamsey. It started small. The state failed to act decisively. Financing flowed, networks expanded, and weapons entered the picture. Today, illegal miners directly challenge state security. Galamsey is no longer only an environmental crisis but also a full-blown national security threat.

Now, we face disturbing signs of another lucrative criminal enterprise: cocaine trafficking.

When shipments worth hundreds of millions of dollars originate from Ghana, these cannot be dismissed as routine drug offences. They signal sophisticated networks backed by massive capital, complex logistics, and international reach.

The tragic histories of Colombia and Mexico offer a stark warning: once drug cartels become entrenched, their wealth and firepower severely undermine state institutions and the rule of law. Ghana cannot afford to follow that path.

A Double Burden: The Real Concern
I am not suggesting galamsey and cocaine are operated by a single cartel. My concern is more fundamental: Ghana is already struggling to contain one massive illicit economy. Can we handle a second?

Fighting galamsey demands continuous intelligence, surveillance, armed deployments, and prosecutions. A major cocaine trade will heap further pressure on our ports, border security, financial intelligence, and judicial capacity. Can our state institutions realistically carry both burdens at the same time?

Large criminal revenues buy protection, incentivize corruption, and buy weapons. Prevention is our only viable strategy. We must stop cocaine trafficking before its financial power and institutional reach make it nearly impossible

and catastrophically expensive to dismantle.
Government Must Get Ahead of the Threat

As an opposition member, I hold the NDC government accountable. But I write this first as a Ghanaian.

The government must uncover who is financing these expensive operations, how such huge consignments bypass our security systems, and the insiders who are facilitating or shielding this trade. Where evidence points to official complicity, the law must strike without political fear or favor.

While recent inter-agency actions are welcome, this must not degenerate into a predictable cycle of routine seizures, courier arrests, and press conferences that leave the kingpins untouched.

We already know the devastating price of letting an illegal economy grow unchecked.

Ghana is already fighting the security threat underpinning galamsey. We cannot afford a second front (cocaine cartels) who are even more powerful.

The time to stop it is now.
#MEN@WORK