Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has doubled down on his allegations that members of Operation Recover All Loots (ORAL) have been conducting intrusive surveillance on his properties using drones, despite strong denials from the committee.
The Effutu lawmaker also revealed that ORAL has been scrutinizing his bank accounts and probing for state assets in his possession, actions he claims are deliberate attempts to undermine his role as Minority Leader.
Afenyo-Markin’s assertions come amid his vigorous scrutiny of President Akufo-Addo’s ministerial nominees, a process he believes has made him a target of political retaliation. Speaking on the Good Evening Ghana show, he dismissed ORAL committee member Martin Kpebu’s denial of the drone allegations, stating, “If [Martin Kpebu] doesn’t know, fine, but if he knows and wants to come to the public space to deny it, I leave him to his conscience.”
Kpebu, a private legal practitioner, had earlier described the drone claims as “ridiculous” and urged the public to disregard them. “The ORAL committee has not sent any drones to spy on the Minority Leader’s properties—it is not true at all. Looking at the members of the team, you can hazard that the committee will not do something ridiculous like that. We do not own any drones as a committee at all,” Kpebu told Citi News.
However, Afenyo-Markin insisted that ORAL’s activities extend beyond drone surveillance, accusing the committee of engaging in what he termed “deep-sea fishing” to investigate his financial and property records. “These guys have been doing deep ocean fishing; they have been checking my bank accounts,” he revealed. The Minority Leader suggested that such tactics are part of a broader strategy to frustrate his efforts to hold the government accountable.
Afenyo-Markin’s allegations have reignited debates about the politicization of state institutions and the use of accountability mechanisms to target political opponents. ORAL, a committee tasked with recovering allegedly misappropriated state assets, has faced criticism in the past for perceived bias and overreach. The Minority Leader’s claims add to growing concerns about the erosion of trust between Ghana’s ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), with both sides frequently accusing each other of abusing power.
Despite the controversy, Afenyo-Markin remains resolute, emphasizing that he anticipated such challenges when he assumed the role of Minority Leader. “At the time I took up this job, I knew all these things would happen. The Minority Leader won’t be allowed to have his peace, so you need to have that gravitas, be ready, and determined,” he said.
As the political standoff intensifies, Afenyo-Markin’s allegations against ORAL highlight the fragile state of Ghana’s political discourse, where accountability and retribution often appear intertwined. Whether these claims will lead to further investigations or simply deepen the divide remains uncertain, but they have undoubtedly added another layer of tension to the already volatile political landscape.
