House Of Rep Speaker To Visit Ghana Over Maltreatment Of Nigerians

By Olamilekan Alani

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, says he will embark on a ‘legislative diplomacy’ visit to Ghana on Wednesday, over hostilities against Nigerians living in the West African country.

Gbajabiamila who made this known to State House correspondents after a closed-door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday.

According to the Speaker, he got the blessing from President Buhari to meet with his Ghanaian counterpart to find a solution to the problem.

“I am leaving for Ghana tomorrow to meet with the Speaker of the Parliament in Ghana to look at the issues on ground as it affects our citizens, to try and calm things down to see if there is a way forward.

“I informed the President; he is aware of every single step that we are taking. We hope that we will come to an amicable settlement one way or the other,” he said.

When asked what his demands were, Gbajabiamila said he was not demanding anything on behalf of the Nigerian government.

The Speaker explained that his mission to Ghana is to “discuss and see how the two countries can resolve whatever the issues are. It is not about making demands, it is diplomacy.”

This comes four days after the Nigerian Government warned that it would no longer tolerate the maltreatment of its citizens in Ghana.

In a statement issued on August 28 by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed,

the Federal Government is deeply concerned by the incessant harassment and the progressive acts of hostility towards the country by Ghanaian authorities.

To Mohammed, the President Buhari administration is urgently considering a number of options, as part of measures to contain the situation.

He also revealed that the government “has been documenting the acts of hostility towards Nigeria and Nigerians by the Ghanaian authorities.”

But reacting on August 30, Ghana’s Information Minister, Endkoro Oppong Nkruma, faulted claims made by the Nigerian government.

He however explained that President Nana Akufo-Addo will engage with President Muhammadu Buhari to resolve the matters amicably.

While reiterating the country’s commitment to maintaining what could be described as warm relations between the two countries, Nkrumah said the move is necessary to guard against straining the diplomatic ties.