Chief Nkem Tony Onyeagolu, speaking to the media in Kumasi
ALL NIGERIAN Community Forum, an association of Nigerians involved in retail businesses in Ghana, has appealed to President Akufo-Addo to direct the re-opening of their shops.
Chief Nkem Tony Onyeagolu, a former president of the group in the Ashanti Region, said its members were currently hard-pressed financially, leading to high indebtedness as they are unable to pay off loans they took from financial institutions to run their businesses.
It would be recalled that shops belonging to foreigners, particularly Nigerians across the country, were closed down in August, last year, by Ghana Union of Traders’ Association (GUTA) and some individuals who said foreigners were taking over retail business.
The affected Nigerian traders lamented that since the closure of their shops, their livelihoods have badly been affected since their goods, monies and documents have been locked up with no hope of repossessing them.
Chief Nkem stated at a news conference in Kumasi that “it will interest you to know that the people whose shops were closed were one sided tribe from Nigeria. And that is the Igbos.”
He claimed that currently there were Indians, Lebanese, Ivorians, Japanese and Europeans who were busily doing retail businesses without any hindrance by GUTA and local authorities.
Chief Nkem disclosed that there had been series of meetings between All Nigerian Community Forum and Nigeria’s Parliament to discuss the way forward but no fruitful response had been communicated to them.
He implored the Government of Ghana, GUTA and Nigerian Union Traders’ Association to hold a meeting and come out with a trade code that would regulate business activities carried out by Nigerians in Ghana.
“We are children here in Ghana and our father is in Nigeria which is far away from us and now we are in our uncle’s (Nana-Addo’s) house which is Ghana. Therefore, we are appealing to His Excellency the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to give us food,” Chief Nkem said.
FROM David Afum, Kumasi