The New Patriotic Party (NPP) is calling on the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) to explain how it compiled and submitted a list of 50 people described as media practitioners to the United States Embassy ahead of Ghana’s participation in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The party says the authority has not properly addressed questions about its reported arrangements with private organisation TRIBE Culture Fest, the use of public funds and the process used to select the people whose names were sent to US officials.
Speaking at an NPP press conference on Thursday, October 15, the party’s Communications Director, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, said the GTA’s response had failed to deal with the central issues raised by the controversy.
The dispute grew after the Minority in Parliament claimed that the US Embassy’s Fraud Prevention Unit had verified the 50 names and found that only two of those listed were genuine media practitioners.
The two people identified by the Minority were Philip Narh and Andy Dosty, both of whom are associated with Multimedia.
“The US embassy scrutiny found out that of the 50 names that the GTA presented to the embassy for business, only two were genuine media persons on the list,” Aboagye said.
He also rejected the suggestion that the controversy had been resolved by the GTA’s denial that it collected money from individuals connected with the list.
“A denial that avoids every specific question is not an answer,” he added.
The NPP is asking the GTA to provide a clear account of its relationship with TRIBE Culture Fest and to state whether public money was committed to the arrangement. It also wants the authority to explain how opportunities linked to visa applications were distributed.
The party’s demands follow earlier questions from the Minority about the reported allocation of 400 visa slots from the US Embassy and 600 from the Canadian Embassy.
The Minority has requested details of the process, including the number of applications submitted under the reported allocations and how many were approved or rejected.
Aboagye said those questions remained unanswered and that the GTA needed to provide a full explanation of the names submitted to the US Embassy, the purpose of the arrangement and the handling of any public resources involved.
The issue has emerged as Ghana prepares for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with the role of the GTA and private partners coming under scrutiny over the organisation of travel and related opportunities connected to the tournament.