A cross section of Nigerian businessmen in Ghana have dismissed as a joke, the admonitions of the Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Amb Olufemi Michael Abikoye urging them to return back to Nigeria. The Ambassador who made the call during an interactive session with Nigerian businessmen in Ghana said that conditions in Nigeria is far better than what it used to be.
Ambassador Abikoye told Nigerian citizens particularly those doing businesses in Ghana to return home since the economy of Nigeria is now in a good shape
“Things are getting better in Nigeria and I can assure you. ..And I don’t see any reason why we should not be proud of Nigeria”, the High Commissioner admonished in a meeting with the members of the Nigeria Union of Traders Association Ghana (NUTAG) in Kumasi, Ghana.
The meeting was a fallout of recent developments in Kumasi where shops owned by Nigerians at Suame in Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti Region, were recently ransacked by raucous Ghanaian youths in the early hours of Wednesday, 19 June 2019 by the locals to register their displeasure against a decision by the Ghana Union Traders Association (GUTA) to reopen closed Nigerian retail shops.
However, the businessmen say that what they expect the Nigerian government to do is to engage their Ghanaian counterpart in ways to address the attacks by Ghanaian youth, and also pay compensation to those whose wares were destroyed. They noted that there is no way every Nigerian will return home, and that it is even in the interest of Nigeria that her citizens are making exploits abroad and remitting funds home.
They therefore called on the Nigerian government to engage their Ghanaian counterpart in resolving the issues insisting that some business laws in Ghana go against the ECOWAS Protocol.
Speaking on the development during the Sensitization and Interactive Session with Ashanti Regional Security Council, the Ambassador said that anywhere in the world when you hear any two Black Men making an achievement, it is either the two are Nigerians or at least one other is
Nigerian traders closed their shops temporarily on Friday, 14 June 2019 over what they described as attacks from their Ghanaian counterparts.
The Ghanaian traders argue that they are only enforcing the laws of Ghana which bar foreigners from engaging in the retail sub-sector, a preserve of Ghanaians.The rampaging youth, who wore red bands and attires, also lit car tyres as part of their protest.
The Ghanaians also expressed anger about the kidnapping scourge in the country which they claim involves Nigerian suspects.
They, therefore, resolved and threatened to deal with the Nigerians since the authorities have not been able to intervene in the matter.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry.