NiDCOM Condems Attacks, Calls for Calm As "Nigerians Must Go” Protests Rocks Ghana

By: Olufemi Orunsola 

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) has condemned the xenophobic attacks on Nigerians calling for calm following spates of "Nigerians-Must-Go" protests that rocked Ghana on Tuesday, with allegations that Nigerians are reportedly guilty of engaging in mass prostitution and ritual killings in the West African country.

OPEN TELEVISION NAIJA (OTN) News gathered from a video that went viral on Tuesday that the Ghanaian protesters, in their large numbers, were seen carrying placards with various inscriptions such as “Our health at stake due to mass prostitution; “Who protects the right and freedom of Ghanaians; “Armed robbery and violent attacks must stop; “Nigerians are kidnapping and using people for rituals; “Our kids are getting missing because of Igbos,” among others. 

They also displayed a picture of a man who was allegedly killed by a Nigerian in the Accra area of the country.

According to one of the protesters, Nigerians have taken over the major markets in Ghana and are perpetrating evil of sorts in their country.

“These Igbo, they are in every part of the country and have targeted our markets. Not just Igbo, Nigerians are in almost every village, and our laws have not allowed foreigners to engage in real dealings. They are perpetrating evil in our country. They even have a Igbo king in Ghana. They have hijacked our lands. It is just a matter of time; we will conquer them and take over our country,” he stressed.

Meanwhile, in a statement released on X on Tuesday, by the NIDCOM Director of Media, Public Relations and Protocols, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, NIDCOM Chairman Abike Dabiri-Erewa condemned the protest, describing it as an unfair generalisation and a “blanket outrage” against Nigerians living in Ghana.

Dabiri-Erewa said, “Nigerians are not criminals. They are good ambassadors wherever they find themselves while those bad ones should be fished out to face necessary sanctions.

“Ghana and Nigeria are like siamese twins. They are brothers and in the spirit of ECOWAS and regional integration should continue to live in peace like brothers.”

Meanwhile, as at the time of filling this report it is not clear if the Ghanaian government had made any official statement on the development.

OTN News recalls that some forty-two years ago, precisely in 1983, a similar occurrence popularly christened “Ghana must go” had happened in Nigerian when the Nigerian government, under President Shehu Shagari enacted a directive ordering about two million undocumented immigrants, many of whom were Ghanaians, to leave the country.

Back then, the Ghanaians hurriedly packed their belongings into travel bags that became known and addressed as Ghana-Must-Go