Nigeria today
reeled out a litany of hostilities and harassment committed by Ghana against
Nigerian interests, Nigerian declared it will no longer tolerate future
unfriendly acts.
President
Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana and President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria: relations
have now gone sour.
In a
statement by Information minister, Lai Mohammed, the Nigerian government announced
it is urgently considering” a number of options at ameliorating the situation”.
The
government wondered why the Ghanaian authorities are maltreating Nigerians and
hitting at Nigerian interest, when the over one million Ghanains resident in
Nigeria, are not being subjected to the kind of hostility being meted out to
Nigerians in Ghana.
Among the
hostile acts mentioned, apart from the harassment of Nigerian traders, were the
demolition of a Nigerian Mission building and the seizure of another one, on
the excuse of expired lease.
Government
was flummoxed by the Ghanaian action.
“Even though
the main reason given for the seizure of Federal Government property at No. 10,
Barnes Road in Accra is the non-renewal of lease after expiration, the Ghanaian
authorities did not give Nigeria the right of first refusal or the notice to
renew the lease.
“By contrast,
the lease on some of the properties occupied by the Ghanaian Mission in Nigeria
has long expired, yet such properties have not been seized.
“Nigeria has
time after time demonstrated its fidelity to the long cordial relations with
Ghana. But indications, especially in recent times, are that Nigeria’s stance
is now being taken for granted and its citizens being made targets of
harassment and objects of ridicule.
“This will no
longer be tolerated under any guise”, Lai Mohammed said.
The
government, however, appealed to Nigerians resident in Ghana to remain law abiding
and avoid engaging in self-help, despite their ordeal.
Part of the
statement read:
The Federal
Government has been documenting the acts of hostility towards Nigeria and
Nigerians by the Ghanaian authorities. These include:
*Seizure of
the Nigerian Mission’s property located at No. 10, Barnes Road, Accra, which
the Nigerian Government has used as diplomatic premises for almost 50 years.
This action is a serious breach of the Vienna Convention.
*Demolition
of the Nigerian Mission’s property located at No. 19/21 Julius Nyerere Street,
East Ridge, Accra, another serious breach of the Vienna Convention.
*Aggressive
and incessant deportation of Nigerians from Ghana. Between Jan. 2018 and Feb.
2019, 825 Nigerians were deported from Ghana.
*Closure of
shops belonging to Nigerians. Over 300 Nigerians shops were locked for four
months in Kumasi in 2018; over 600 Nigerian shops were locked in 2019 and,
currently, over 250 Nigerians shops have been locked.
*Residency
Permit requirements, for which the Ghana Immigration Service has placed huge
fees, far higher than the fees charged by the Nigerian Immigration Service.
These include the compulsory
Non-citizen
ID card (US$120, and US$60 for yearly renewal); Medical examinations, including
for Covid-19 which is newly-introduced (about US$120), and payment for
residency permit (US$400 compared to the N7,000 being paid by Ghanaians for
residency card in Nigeria)
*Outrageous
stipulations in the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre Act. When the Act was
initially promulgated in 1994, a foreigner is required to invest at least
US$300,000 by way of equity capital and also employ 10 Ghanaians. This Act has
now been amended twice, with the 2018 GIPC Act raising the minimum capital base
for foreign-owned businesses to US$1m. Though targeted at foreigners, it seems
GIPC’s definition of foreigners is Nigerians. The GIPC Act also negates the ECOWAS
Protocol.
*Media war
against Nigerians in Ghana. The negative reportage of issues concerning
Nigerians resident in Ghana by the Ghanaian media is fuelling an emerging
xenophobic attitude towards Nigerian traders and Nigerians in general. The
immediate fallout is the incessant harassment and arrest of Nigerian traders
and closure of their shops.
Harsh and
openly-biased judicial trial and pronouncement of indiscriminately-long jail
terms for convicted Nigerians. There are currently over 200 Nigerians in the
Nsawam Maximum prison in Ghana.
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