Ghanian government has no plans to deport Nigerians, says Ablakwa

… As he meets Nigerian Foreign Affairs counterpart, Bianca Ojukwu

Following a recent demonstration by some Ghanaians calling for the deportation of Nigerian nationals from Ghana, both countries have condemned the act, indicating it could mar the relationship between the two countries. 

The Nigerian government has since sent a fact-finding delegation to ascertain the truth in the reports, which have become topical in Nigeria and caught the attention of the Nigerian President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Speaking at a meeting with the delegation on July 30, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa said, “As we have agreed, the video that went viral which incensed Ghanaians legitimately, we were all outraged when we saw that video. That video has been condemned by our counterparts from Nigeria. They have reprimanded the gentleman. He has been asked not to engage in such statements and such commentary.”

Mr Ablakwa added ; “I had met him earlier, and he was very contrite in the meeting. He has apologized. He’s issued a public statement apologizing to President Mahama to the government and the people of Ghana. Fellow Ghanaians, let’s also remember that Nigeria is one of the places where we have a lot of Ghanaians living in that country. A lot of Ghanaians. Our consular department tells us that not less than 500,000 Ghanaians are living in Nigeria. So, there is always the potential of reprisal attacks.”

The Foreign Minister, therefore, called for calm.

“And so, it is absolutely crucial that this is managed very well,” he said.

in her remarks, the Nigerian Minister of State Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegu Ojukwu, said her observations were different from the widespread media reports in Nigeria She used the occasion to call on Nigerians in Ghana to respect the laws of their host country.

“I came, and I saw with my own two eyes that there were no
tyres burning on the streets and people with placards everywhere urging Nigerians to be deported. It speaks to how the government of President John Mahama was able to rise to the occasion. President Mahama and President Bola are like brothers. So the message in short would be that there is no cause for alarm. The situation is being handled quite effectively,”she noted.
“We will continue with our stakeholder engagement. We have met some of the dramatist personnel, the people who are in the middle of this crisis, to continue to ensure that this is not a situation that repeats itself.