Govt’s Failure To Protect Nigeria High Commission’s Building Not An Excuse – Analyst

An International Relations Analyst, Dr. Rashid Haruna says it is not an excuse that Government through the Ghana Police Service could not protect the building of the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana.

“Based on what eyewitnesses said, they had state protection so I am not so sure what they are talking about of an unidentified people. It’s an excuse that cannot be accepted. If you look at the video footage of the demolition, you will hear the Nigerians saying they reported the incident to the police in the night so what is it that police are not aware of? They reported the breaking of the wall on Wednesday and the people came back on Friday night on the 19th of June 2020 to continue the demolition armed to the teeth with bulldozers. Do ordinary people just have access to arms or do ordinary people have access to bulldozers where they can just go and demolish foreign missions? No.”

“We need to respect the Geneva Convention, which we are signatories to. And don’t forget we have Ghanaians living in Nigeria and our Nigerian cousins and brothers, a lot of times are very quick to retaliate so what if they did? What would have happened? Are we going to excuse the government of Muhammadu Buhari, no? I said that it is just an excuse and these guys (Ghana government) should do the right thing and rectify the matter,” he said.

Dr. Haruna made the remarks on Monday, June 22, 2020, in a Citi News interview.

Armed men allegedly invaded the parcel of land on which the Commission was erecting a building on and pulled down parts of the said building.

The Osu Traditional Council accused the Nigeria High Commission of trespassing on the land belonging to it . Ghana apologises to Nigeria

Meanwhile, the Government of Ghana has apologised to the Nigeria High Commission to Ghana over the issue.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway who spoke after visiting the commission said, “we are sorry this has happened” and assured that the ongoing investigation would be transparent.

Police, National Security, and the Lands Commission are looking into the matter, she said.

“We will ensure that whatever the outcome is, we will not hide it from the people of Ghana or the people of Nigeria. It will be laid bare,” she said with the commission's Charge D' Affairs, Esther Arewa, at her side.

Madam Ayorkor Botchway stressed that the incident was “not a government-sanctioned activity” and that Ghana had respect for rule of law.

---citinewsroom