Local traders in Ghana’s second largest city of Kumasi on Wednesday locked up shops belonging to foreigners in some commercial hubs.
The closure took place in areas like Alarbar, Adhye and Kejetia with Nigerian traders bearing the most brunt.
It’s unclear what sparked the said lock up but local media reported it was a distress action coming on the heels of the closure of the Nigerian border which has affected several Ghanaian traders.
The leader of Nigerian Traders Union in the Ashanti region where the lock ups took place, Chief Kizito Obiora has cautioned the affected foreigners not to retaliate.
He said “As we speak now, there are some of the guys here at magazine closing shops belonging to foreigners. So we have contacted the police.”
Police officer were deployed to some of the commercial hubs to break the padlocks and protect the shops of the foreigners.
The Ghana Union of Traders Association has deferred comments on the matter as a result of a meeting over the impasse.
Ghana’s government has been under pressure to ban all imports from Nigeria as a sign of disapproval to the ongoing closure of Nigeria’s borders with neighbouring West African countries.
Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer has for months now closed its borders to stop what it claims was the smuggling of rice, weapons and sub-standard goods into the country.
But the closure is having devastating effects on other ECOWAS member states like Ghana.
Source:Africafeeds.com
