Coronavirus:’You can’t evacuate Ghanaians yet want to implement ROPAL’ – Omane Boamah jabs Gov’t

Former communications minister under, Dr Edward Omane Boamah has hit hard at the Akufo-Addo government over its feet-dragging tactics towards saving Ghanaians in China over the outbreak of coronavirus in the Asian country.

In an interview with Mugabe Maase on Inside Politics on Power 97.9 FM Friday afternoon, the medical doctor cum politician questioned the rationale behind the Akufo-Addo government’s failure to secure or evacuate Ghanaians citizens in Wuhan, the city in China’s Hubei province that is the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak.

A growing number of countries around the world are evacuating or planning to evacuate diplomatic staff and citizens from parts of China hit by the new coronavirus, but Ghanaian citizens, particularly students have told Power 97.9 FM News that they are stranded in the country where the majority of confirmed cases stand at 34,598 and death toll risen to 723.

One of the stranded students in Wuhan, who gave his name as Philip, in an interview with Mugabe Maase, said the Ghana Embassy in China had confirmed arrangement of an evacuation plan but the government was yet to approve it.

“Ghana’s officials here have told us there is no money to fly us back home, and we are stranded,” Philip noted.

But Dr Omane Boamah who was a guest on the show jibbed the government for not fastracking steps to get Ghanaians in China to come home safely.

“It is very worrying…The government must be sensitive to the plights of the citizens there. One aircraft can bring them here but this government has shown it is insensitive. The government can’t evacuate its citizens but wants to implement ROPAL [Representation of the People Amendment Law (ROPAL) Act (699)],” he fumed.

To him, the government doesn’t care about the safety of its citizens abroad but wants to spend huge funds to organise elections for them abroad.

“My fellow Ghanaians abroad,” Dr Boamah said,”when the government brings ballot boxes to you to vote show them where power lies and vote against them [the NPP].”

About ROPAL

ROPAL provides the opportunity for Ghanaians living abroad to participate in general election in Ghana. It was passed by Parliament in 2005.

However, twelve years down the line, the Electoral Commission has not been able to implement ROPAL for obvious reasons.

President Akufo Addo during the July 2017 Homecoming Summit in Accra gave the assurance that government is determined to provide the needed support to enable the EC to start the implementation processes towards ROPAL.

The Electoral Commission (EC) has said it is committed to implementing it but the opposition NDC says if it will be implemented, then it must be every country and not in some specific countries.