President of the Nigeria Union of Traders Association in Ghana (NUTAG), Chwukuemeka Nnaji has expressed shock at Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah after the government spokesperson denied allegations from the Nigerian government that their Ghanaian counterparts are targeting and harassing Nigerian traders.
According to the NUTAG president, the Ghana, Nigeria trade war has been in existence for years therefore, it is surprising Ghana's Information Minister said Nigerian nationals are not being maltreated and intimidated in Ghana.
In an interview with GhanaWeb, Mr Nnaji said “I don’t know where he’s living, whether he’s living in heaven or earth because the way they see things is different from what we see here. I’m not ready for political talking…he is the big man”.
On Friday, August 28, 2020, the Nigerian government issued a warning to the Government of Ghana over what they label as “incessant harassment” of its citizens in Ghana.
According to the Nigerian government, the acts of hostility toward them by Ghanaian authorities will no longer be tolerated.
Their statement came after about 49 shops belonging to Nigerians were closed down in Kumasi by the Trades Ministry Inter-ministerial task force when they embarked on a documentation exercise.
Ghana rejects accusations by Nigeria, moves for diplomatic engagements
The Government of Ghana on Sunday, August 30 rejected the accusations levelled against Ghana by Nigeria that their nationals were intimidated and maltreated in Ghana.
In a six-page response signed by the Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the statement indicated that it was inappropriate for the Nigerian government to suggest that Nigerian were ill-treated in Ghana.
Mr Nkrumah said “Ghana finds it imperative, however, from the onset, to state, for the public record, that the outline of issues by the Nigerian Federal Minister is not reflective of the developments in Ghana. Any protests, decisions or actions based on these reports will, thus, be unjustified”.
He also noted that Ghana has not breached any trade law while enforcing its local laws, ie, the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) law.
Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah