Hundreds of Nigerian traders massed up at the premises of the Nigerian High Commission in protest of what they call inhumane treatment meted out to them by the Ghanaian government.
According to the traders, some of whose shops have been closed since December 2019, they are dying of hunger and want to be evacuated to Nigeria if Ghanaian authorities fail to open their shops.
Foreign traders in Ghana’s retail space have, for some time now, been at loggerheads with their local counterparts – especially the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) – over the legitimacy of their activity.
Section 27(1) of GIPC Act 865 highlights activities that foreign investors are not permitted to invest or participate in, including the sale of goods or provision of services in a market, petty trading, hawking or selling of goods in a stall at any place.
Against this backdrop, local authorities have, on multiple occasions, moved in to shut down operations of businesses which they believed were flouting this directive.
But President of the Nigeria Union of Traders Association (NUTAG), Chukwuemeka Nnaji is calling on the High Commission to come to their aid.
Acting High Commissioner, Esther Arewa subsequently received their petition and pledged to do his best in getting their concerns addressed.
Source:Fiilafmonline/JoyNews
