The National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) has called on government to consider the immediate evacuation of Ghanaian students from the Ukraine-Russia region, following reports of tensions and violent clashes.
In a statement jointly issued by the Union’s Secretary for International Relations, Pius Theophilus Baidoo; the Secretary, Julius Kwame Anthony and the NUGS President, Emmanuel Yiadom Boakye, the Union stated that the call for the evacuation is to safeguard the Ghanaian students from any impending danger.
“In recognition of the geopolitical turmoil in the Ukraine-Russia region, the National Union of Ghanaian Students by this communiqué calls on the Government of Ghana to accelerate efforts in ensuring the safety of all Ghanaian students studying within the region.
“As conflict escalates within the region, governments of countries across the world are prioritizing the evacuation of their citizens from the area, to forestall harm to their citizens. Currently, a number of students have fled the region, showing growing insecurity and fear among our students.
“Some of those students including Chapter Executives of NUGS in Ukraine have touched down and made contact with the National Secretariat of NUGS, advising that urgent steps be taken to ensure the safety of their colleagues still in the region. As the mother body of Ghanaian students, the safety of our students remains our paramount concern, hence our advocacy for this line of action,” a portion of the statement read.
In proposing a way forward, NUGS suggested that students who are evacuated from the regions could be allowed to get some relief in the Western provinces of Ukraine.
“We believe that the model used for the evacuation of students from China at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic could be adopted in this instance as well. We are thus asking for the evacuation of students from the Eastern Provinces of Ukraine which is the present nucleus of the conflict, and out of Russia as the country may pose an overall hostile environment to our students.
“Students may be temporarily resettled in the Western provinces of Ukraine which remain calm at present, or most preferably, out of the country altogether and back home till a resolution is reached on this crisis,” NUGS added.
Source:Fiilafmonline/Adomonline
