The Ghanaian government has initiated moves to stave off a looming diplomatic row between Nigeria and Ghana over maltreatment of Nigerians in that country.
In a statement it issued yesterday, Ghana denied that it has ever mistreated Nigerian citizens living in the country as reported on the media.
Apparently reacting to the issues raised by Nigeria’s minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, Ghana’s minister of Information, Kojo Nkrumah, in the four-page statement, defended the $1million trade levy and other regulations imposed on Nigerian traders.
He noted that Nigeria had equally issued executive orders with a view to preventing foreigners from getting jobs made exclusively for Nigerians.
Nkrumah said it was surprising that Ghanaian laws could be described as outrageous, saying it was on record that Nigeria had taken a number of steps in pursuit of its national interests.
The minister cited the closure of the Seme Krake borders since August 2019 as part of steps taken by the Federal Government of Nigeria, which he said had affected neighbouring countries.
Nkrumah also accused Nigerian traders in Ghana of gross violations of retail trade laws, including tax evasion, immigration offences, and selling substandard products.
He said there was widespread abuse and disregard for local laws and regulations governing retail trade by some foreigners, including Nigerians, which needed to be addressed.
“The compliance exercises conducted in the selected markets revealed gross violations of retail trade laws and regulations by Ghanaians and foreigners, including Nigerians.
“These violations included tax evasion, immigration offences, trading in substandard products, violation of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre law, improper registration of firms, under-payment of business operating permits, falsification of documents, among others.
The statement noted: “The Federal Republic (Nigeria), on the other hand, is on record to have taken a number of steps in recent months, in pursuit of her national interests, which have gravely affected other countries in the region.
“These include the closure of Nigeria’s Seme Krake border from August 2019 to date and the issuance of executive orders by Nigeria’s Presidency preventing foreigners from getting jobs which Nigerians can do, to mention a few”.
Mohammed had in a statement last Friday listed various acts of aggression against Nigeria and its citizens by the Ghanaian authorities, including the take over of some Nigerian diplomatic properties, discriminatory deportation of 825 Nigerians within one year, and harsh jail sentences on Nigerian nationals.
But the Ghanaian minister explained that contrary to Mohammed’s claims that 825 Nigerians were repatriated between January 2018 and February 2019, 700 Nigerians who were involved in fraud, prostitution, and armed robbery were deported from Ghana.
Meanwhile, the minister disclosed that the Ghanaian president, Nana Akufo-Addo, would engage with his Nigerian counterpart, President Muhammadu Buhari and develop a framework for validating the claims of ill-treatment of citizens of either country and ensure they enjoy the full exercise of their rights while respecting the sovereignty and laws of both countries.
While still denying the allegations raised by Mohammed, Nkrumah said his counterpart’s statement on the alleged confiscation of Nigerian Mission property located at No. 10, Barnes road, Accra, was incorrect, noting that the land was acquired by Nigeria from a private citizen, Thomas Hardy, on October 23, 1959.
The minister further explained that the commercial lease on the land expired 46 years ago without any evidence of renewal by the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana.
“The government of Ghana was not involved in the transaction and had not seized the property in question,” the minister stated.
Responding to the claim that the lease on some of the properties owned by the Ghana Mission in Nigeria has expired, Nkrumah said that Accra had acquired a freehold land at Pope John Paul Street, Maitama, Abuja, through a commercial arrangement in 1989 and built a residential structure for the staff.
He stressed that the residential building on the Nigerian Mission premises in Accra demolished in June was carried out by a representative of the Osu traditional stool and had nothing to do with the government.
On the high residency permit levies, including the $120 for COVID-19 test imposed by the authorities, he said that this applied to all foreigners and not just Nigerians.
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