You cannot threaten a sovereign state like Ghana - Lawyer slams Trump, Israeli Embassy

Private legal practitioner, lawyer Gary Nimako, has taken a swipe at the United States President, Donald Trump, and the Israeli Embassy for threatening Ghana over the country’s vote against the US President, Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Ghana was among the 128 countries that endorsed a position that Jerusalem, which is being claimed by Israel and Palestine as capital, can only be said to be Israel’s capital after a peace deal is reached.

At an emergency session of United Nations on Thursday, only 9 countries, including the US and Israel, voted against the position of waiting until consensus has been built on the matter.

The US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, ahead of the votes threatened that the US will remember countries that “disrespected” it by voting against it. The US government had also threatened to cut funding to countries that did not back its position.

The Israeli Embassy also expressed disappointment in Ghana saying, ‘’The Embassy of the State of Israel in Ghana therefore regrets the mistaken vote of Ghana against the State of Israel during the Special United Nation’s (UN) General Assembly sitting on Thursday, 21 December 2017 as the assembly adopted a resolution regarding Israel’s capital Jerusalem. We hope such mistake will not be repeated by Ghana in subsequent motions.’’

But in an interview with Nyankonton Mu Nsem on Rainbow Radio 87.5Fm, the lawyer said, Ghana cannot be threatened by any country because ‘’we are a sovereign state.’’

According to him, the decision we took was one that expresses our foreign policy which we have held over the years and cannot be threatened for that. He said, if by this decision aid to this country would be cut, so be it.

He also re-echoed the call by President Nana Akufo-Addo for Ghana and Africa to work hard and build their nations beyond foreign aid.