Apologize to Ghanaians for ‘unsubstantiated’ security alert – Prof Aning to US Embassy
Professor Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, Director of Faculty of Academic Affairs and Research at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre has urged the United States Embassy in Ghana to apologize to Ghanaians over the unsubstantiated security alert the Embassy issued to its citizens in Ghana.
On Wednesday, March 9 2022, the embassy issued a security alert and warned American nationals in Ghana against travelling to the Northern parts of the country.
The statement from the embassy stated that “The U.S. Embassy in Accra, Ghana, has received unsubstantiated information that U.S. citizens may be targeted for kidnapping for ransom in northern Ghana, to include the Upper East Region and the Upper West Region. U.S. citizens travelling in Ghana should exercise caution while visiting border areas, in particular the northern border, and be sure to stay abreast of any Security Alerts affecting those areas. Due to concerns over criminal activity in remote areas, travel of U.S. government personnel to the northern and northwestern border is currently limited”
However, Prof. Aning has disagreed with the methodology employed by the Embassy to advise its citizens in Ghana, adding that it damages Ghana’s reputation.
Prof Aning as cited by 3news.com on Monday, March 14 2022 remarked that “I think it is unfair and the Foreign Ministry must protest. This information is unfair, it’s unwarranted and it needs a much more solid basis”
While urging the Government of Ghana to take on the matter, he up reckoned that “If they themselves have used the word ‘unsubstantiated’, then I think they owe the government of Ghana an apology and I’ll be terribly disappointed if the ambassador or the deputy ambassador has not called on the Foreign Ministry”
“In my line of work, unsubstantiated facts are rubbish and I think we should treat it as the rubbish that it is,” he said.
