A Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Economic Research and Public Policy, Dr. Kwasi Nyame-Baafi, has called on President John Dramani Mahama to focus on addressing the refugee crisis in the Savannah Region instead of persecuting political opponents.
In a note copied to media houses, the astute development economist emphasized that the government’s continued arrest and detention of political opponents should end so that much energy could be channeled to resolving the conflict and humanitarian crisis in the Savannah Region.
“The government must get its priorities right. A sizable number of our citizens have fled the country to Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso, but the government is focusing on arresting activists of the opposition party” he said.
“Gbenyiri is on fire, displacing over 50,000 indigenes of the area whilst about 15,000 people have run away from the country to neighbouring Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso. This is a security crisis, but the government is not focusing on these critical issues” he added.
Dr. Nyame-Baafi couldn’t fathom why the state security agencies do not seem to be concerned about the refugee crisis but are busily searching for critics of the Mahama government to be arrested and detained.
“It is strange why the government is so fixated on arresting social media activists of the opposition NPP who criticize the government when there is this humanitarian situation involving some Ghanaians. The resources, energies and time being used on these needless arrests must be channeled into bringing the refugee crisis to an end”
The economics don appealed to President John Dramani Mahama to redirect his attention to measures that can bring the conflict in his own region to and end and restore peace and stability in the region.
“This crisis is reported to have claimed more lives than what’s being reported officially. Efforts geared towards restoring peace and stability and bringing back the displaced people should be high on President Mahama’s agenda. The continuous arrests and detentions of critics of his administration will not bring peace to his home region” he stated.
