Ministry, Canadian Embassy snub supporters' petition

Ghana supporters are furious over the refusal of officials from the Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Canadian Embassy to accept their petition following their peaceful protest on Wednesday.

The group, an amalgamation of the various supporters unions in Ghana hit the streets to demonstrate against what they believe is a clear case of discrimination and unfairness on the part of the Canadian High Commission in the issuance of visas.

Over 4000 Ghanaian fans who intended to travel to Canada for the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup have been denied visas by the Canadian High Commission in Ghana.

Many believe the recent reports of the over 200 Ghanaian fans who applied for political asylum in Brazil after the 2014 World Cup under the false pretext of religious conflicts might have influenced the stiff posture of the Canadian High Commission.

But the Ghana supporters maintain they are not being treated fairly – the reason they hit the streets to demonstrate on Wednesday.

Their petition after the peaceful protest along the principal streets of Accra was however not received by their intended targets including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Canadian High Commission.

Leading member of the demonstration Abdul Aziz Futah says while they are disappointed by the refusal to accept their petition, they will not be deterred in their fight to restore fairness in the visa application process.

“The numbers were encouraging and the procession was very peaceful but then the disappointment was that officials of the Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Canadian embassy refused to come for the petition,” he told Asempa FM.

“This is very shocking especially after serving these organizations notice of what was to happen.

“It is a sad situation that monies are taken from Ghanaians with the expectation that they will be given a fair consideration in acquiring a visa and this is what happens.

“But then I can assure you that we are not deterred. We will continue this trend until fairness is attained.

“Officials might not come out for the petition but then they’ll hear, watch and read the news in the media.”