Stephanie S. Sullivan
The new United States Ambassador to Ghana, Stephanie S. Sullivan, has given an assurance that the United States will not force Ghana to accept deportees who are not Ghanaian citizens.
According to her, if illegal immigrants found to possess Ghanaian passports actually do not come from Ghana by the United States laws, they would be allowed to stay in the country but would be closely monitored to ensure that they are sent to their countries of origin if that is established.
She, however, said that the ban on visa for ministers, parliamentarians, their spouses and children under 21 years remains effective from yesterday, adding that these categories of people would only have one entry visas.
Madam Sullivan indicated that apart from that there are no restrictions for visas by ordinary Ghanaians and that the normal visa processing is still ongoing for applicants who are not in these official categories.
The US ambassador was speaking to journalists yesterday after paying a courtesy call on the Speaker of Parliament, Prof Mike Oquaye, and the leadership of Parliament yesterday.
She explained that until the US sees the commitment of Ghana to ensure that all Ghanaians found to be illegally staying in the United States are repatriated, the ban will still be in force.
Madam Sullivan pointed out that the US is not forcing the country to accept all those with documentary evidence that they are from Ghana, but it is incumbent on the Ghana’s mission in Washington to prove the true citizenship of those caught by the law for them to be deported.
She also indicated that those who had been proven to be Ghanaian citizens needed to be issued with travelling certificates immediately and be repatriated to Ghana.
The US ambassador said the ban on government officials and parliamentarians is even lighter compared to other countries that have fallen foul of the US immigration laws.
She, however, indicated that the US can do something about the ban if the ambassador of Ghana to the US and the Ghanaian mission in the US can dialogue with the US authorities and present a convincing case to the US authorities.
By Thomas Fosu Jnr