Adhere to legal provisions on deportation – Kpebu urges Interior Minister

Private legal practitioner, Martin Kpebu has cautioned the Interior Minister and national security agencies to strictly adhere to the law when dealing with foreigners involved in illegal mining operations in Ghana.

His comments come on the back of recent reports that the Interior Minister, indicated plans to deport arrested foreign nationals without prosecuting them—a move Kpebu says would contravene existing Ghanaian laws.

“The law says that when you get a foreigner involved in galamsey, what you do is that you take the person to court,” Kpebu explained.

“After the court, the person must serve the sentence. Because yesterday somebody called me very livid about the fact that the Interior Minister had said that they would deport people.”

Referencing Act 995, particularly Section 99(4), Kpebu read directly from the legislation: “Where a non-Ghanaian who is liable on summary conviction under subsection 3 is a person liable to deportation under Section 35 of the Immigration Act 2000, Act 573, that non-Ghanaian shall, where sentenced to a term of imprisonment, serve the full sentence before deportation in accordance with subsection 3 of Section 37 of Act 573.”

The emphasis, he reiterated, is on serving the full sentence.

“So, the Interior Minister—please, Honourable Mutaka—the people are saying we should inform you that they don’t want deportations without due process,” Kpebu warned.

He emphasized the need to respect the rule of law, especially in high-stakes matters that involve foreign nationals, environmental destruction, and national security.

“Let’s do the right thing. So that we are not branded as a nation without laws,” he advised.

According to Kpebu, if there is a general consensus that existing laws no longer serve the national interest, the proper route is to pursue parliamentary amendment—not unlawful shortcuts. “If at the end of the day it’s becoming clear that we want to do a U-turn… sure, then there should be an amendment of the law,” he said.

“But we must follow due process until then. Otherwise, we risk making decisions that later prove costly—legally, diplomatically, and environmentally,” he stressed.

The post Adhere to legal provisions on deportation – Kpebu urges Interior Minister first appeared on 3News.

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