Maher Kheir and his entourage in a photograph with the Asantehene
THE LEBANESE ambassador to Ghana, Maher Kheir, has described the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, as a man of peace.
Maher Kheir, who was at Manhyia Palace in Kumasi with his entourage last Friday to pay a courtesy call on the occupant of the Golden Stool, said they were there to listen to the wise counsel of the Asante monarch and also inform him of their future plan to support Asanteman economically.
“The Lebanese community in Ghana contribute to the country’s economy in many sectors, especially in the area of education, and it will not relent in this direction,” he stated.
He noted that the Lebanese scholarship programme has already benefited around 400 Ghanaian students in Accra and Kumasi.
Welcoming the ambassador, the Asante monarch lauded him for his intentions of investing in Kumasi.
The ambassador and his entourage also paid a courtesy call on the Sarkin Zongo, Sultan Umar Farouk Saeed, at his office where he (Maher Kheir) was enstooled as the King of Ambassadors in Ghana.
The Sarkin Zongo, stated that, within the Arabs and Europeans, the Lebanese community were the first people that the Zongo people knew about.
He explained that Lebanon has assisted the Zongo community in diverse ways and continues to do so.
“I think not all people here know the history between Lebanon and Ghana. People like us have known the assistance of the Lebanese in Ghana. When we were kids, any Whiteman we saw we would think that they were Lebanese because they were the only people that used to assist the students in the Zongo communities in terms of education,” he said.
The Sarkin Zongo described the Zongo community as the poorest community in Ghana, and appealed to the envoy to continue to support them.
Sultan Umar Farouk Saeed also appealed to the Lebanese Ambassador to support them with computer accessories at the ICT centre constructed in the Zongo community.
FROM David Afum, Kumasi