The Minority Caucus in Parliament has called on the government to open Ghana’s land borders to allow for the free movement of persons and goods.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on March 22, 2020 announced the closure of the country’s land, sea and air borders as part of measures to reduce the importation of the dreaded coronavirus disease.
The air borders were opened on September 1, 2020 and subsequently the sea borders.
Despite several appeals to the government by lawmakers from the land border communities for the borders to be opened, the government has argued that opening the borders would lead to the importation of COVID-19 cases.
But addressing journalists in Parliament yesterday, Minority Leader and Tamale South Member of Parliament, Haruna Iddrisu said it was time the borders were opened for the return of normal living for citizens in those communities.
“We call on President Akufo-Addo to take practical urgent steps for the reopening of Ghana’s land borders to allow for free flow of persons and goods across ECOWAS and the rest of the world.”
Though Haruna Iddrisu said the country was not out of the woods of COVID-19 yet, keeping the borders shut and denying residents their livelihoods in the process was unfortunate.
“We want to see a return to normalcy. There can be no justification for the continued closure of Ghana’s land borders,” Mr Iddrisu stressed.
Haruna Iddrisu said as chairperson of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), President Akufo-Addo must give meaning to resolutions on the free movement of people and goods.
He also took the opportunity to call on the government to end the “fleecing and rip-off” of Ghanaians and international travellers into the country at the airport in the name of COVID-19 testing by Frontiers Health Services.
“Nowhere in the world does anybody pay US$150 for a COVID-19 test. For non-Ghanaians to be compelled to pay US$150 in the name of COVID-19 test; which COVID-19 test arrangements and procurement is questionable, and raises questions about us using COVID-19 for excuse as money-making enterprise instead of public health epidemic…, we do not think that persons travelling to Ghana from abroad must be made to pay US$150. We consider that a rip-off, prohibitively high.”
In his view testing for Ghanaian passport holders at the airport needed to be free of charge
“What is it that we cannot do for our own people who want to return to Ghana to contribute to the future and economic development of our country,” he asked.
Mr Iddrisu hinted that he would soon move a motion to demand accountability into the operations of Frontiers as he alleged that efforts were being made to conceal the number of international travellers into the country over the period.
BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI
