Recall US Ambassador Victor Smith immediately – Minority to Mahama

The Minority in Parliament has called on President John Dramani Mahama to immediately recall Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Ambassador Victor Smith, accusing him of unprofessional conduct and failure to safeguard Ghana’s diplomatic interests.

The Deputy Ranking Member on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh, said the ambassador’s actions had worsened Ghana’s diplomatic challenges at a time when the country was facing serious international setbacks.

According to him, while Ghana’s diplomatic standing is under strain, the ambassador in Washington has been distracted by what he described as petty political score-settling, rather than focusing on critical diplomatic engagement.

He accused the ambassador of breaching the confidentiality required in consular services and dragging Ghana’s mission in Washington into bipartisan domestic political battles.

Ayeh described the conduct as unprofessional and a clear dereliction of duty, adding that it amounted to yet another case of incompetence within Ghana’s foreign service leadership.

He said the ambassador had failed catastrophically in his responsibilities, particularly at a time when Ghana’s national interests in the United States were hanging in the balance.

According to the Minority, the ambassador’s focus on issuing press releases that allegedly breached consular confidentiality had come at the expense of serious diplomatic engagement.

The Minority warned that Ghana could not afford to have ambassadors who prioritise publicity over diplomacy, especially when delicate bilateral relations and the welfare of Ghanaians abroad are at stake.

“While Ghana burns diplomatically, our ambassador to Washington is engaged in petty political score settling breaching the confidentiality that consular services require and dragging Ghana’s mission int bipartisan domestic battles. This is not just unprofessional, it is a dereliction of duty, it is another case of incompetence.

“…He has failed catastrophically. Ghana cannot afford ambassadors who prioritises press release breaching confidentiality on consular services over diplomatic engagement when our national interest hang in the balance.”