Specialized courts in the offing to fast-track prosecution of drug peddlers-Minister

The government says it is preparing to set up specialised courts to speed up prosecutions for drug use and trafficking, after a sharp increase in arrests linked to narcotics cases.

The Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, announced at an event in which the Narcotics Control Commission received new operational vehicles to support work across the country.

He said enforcement could not stop at arrests and seizures, arguing that the deterrent effect depends on prosecutions moving quickly through the courts.

Figures cited by the Ministry of the Interior show the number of cases handled by the commission rising from 56 in 2024 to 158 in 2025, an increase of about 182 percent. Over the same period, officers seized 840 kilograms of cannabis and 341 kilograms of cocaine, the minister said.

He also said trafficking patterns were shifting, with travel-related trafficking accounting for 23 percent of interceptions involving new psychoactive substances, while the remainder involved other emerging substances.

Against that backdrop, the commission intensified patrols during the festive and fasting season from December 2025 to January 2026, focusing on hotspots in Accra and other strategic locations, the minister said.

To tackle delays in the justice process, he said the government was deepening collaboration with the Attorney-General’s Department and holding advanced discussions on creating specialised narcotics courts to fast-track drug-related cases and strengthen deterrence.

On the logistics support, the Ministry said the commission received 10 Nissan Navara pickup vehicles, described as part of a broader push to strengthen mobility, surveillance and rapid response. The Director General, Brigadier General Maxwell Obuba Mantey, said the vehicles would be deployed responsibly.