Closure of Nigerian shops not illegal - GUTA announces

The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) has reacted to claims made by some Nigerian traders who protested at the Nigerian High Commission’s residence in Accra a week ago over the closure of their shops for the past 8 months.

According to the President of the Association, Dr. Joseph Obeng, the action taken by his outfit is in accordance with the law as well as that of the ECOWAS protocol which indicates that these Nigerian traders cannot import goods into the country to sell.

He further indicated that their shops will remain closed until they adhere to the laid down rules governing trading in Ghana.

In an interview with GhanaWeb, Dr. Obeng said: “Whatever they are saying should be backed by the law. We are not doing things outside the law. Whatever we are doing is within the laws and even within the tenants of the ECOWAS protocol itself. They are not supposed to trade in goods outside the sub-region and the fact that they continue to import goods and then come and sell here goes against the protocols itself and they will never be allowed. If they were goods representing their home countries, then, of course, we’d say it is within the tenets of the ECOWAS protocols”.

He added that if they want to breach the rules of origin by importing goods into the sub-region, they would have to comply with the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) laws that give foreigners the opportunity to operate here as well as import goods for their business.

On Monday, June 22, 2020, some Nigerian traders joined protests against what they labelled as unfair treatment in Ghana.

According to them, aside from the demolition of a property near the High Commissioner’s residence, their shops have been closed for the past 8 months.

‘We condemn the demolition of our staff building in Ghana’; ‘Nigerians’ shops locked up in circle Accra 8 good months’; ‘Nigerians can no longer breathe in Ghana’ some of their placards read.