Nigerian traders at the Suame Magazine in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region have allegedly been attacked by Ghanaians, who vowed to evict foreigners from the market.
The leaders of the Nigerian retailers at the Suame Magazine say their members are living in fear following what they call incessant attacks on them, according to reports.
They accused local retailers and the Ghana Union Traders Association of targeting its members and forcefully evicting them from their shops.
Speaking with Citinewsroom, an executive member of the Nigerian retailers Association, Victor Moname, threatened reprisal attacks if the local retailers continue to harass their members.
He said the Ashanti Regional Police Commander deployed some of his personnel to the area to forestall such occurrences but the attacks persist.
“The [Ashanti] Regional [Police] Commander told us that the Nigeria High Commission had called him over the same issue. He said he had sent a police patrol team to Suame Magazine, Kumasi. But when some of our people open their shops, some boys jumped on them again including some of the GUTA executives.”
“Some of their items got broken because when the boys come and ask you to close your shop, and you refuse, they destroy your things. So that was the reason why when they came to tell us to close the shops, we obliged because they are many. They are up to 50, and you can’t identify all of them. They don’t even have shops in Magazine.”
Victor Moname said currently all the Nigerian retailers at Suame Magazine “had closed our shops including all our workers because they are afraid.”
The Ghanaian government ordered non-Ghanaians in retail trade to leave their markets by July 27, 2018, or face the wrath of the government.
Even though the Ministry of Trade and Industry threatened legal action against stubborn foreigners, it later rescinded its decision, citing inadequate sensitization as the reason for the suspension. (Agency Report)
