Border Closure: We'll Punish Illegal Immigrants and their Ghanaian Accomplices – Prez Akufo-Addo Warns

The Government of Ghana says it will punish foreigners who enter into the country during this period when its borders have been closed following the covid-19 outbreak.

The government added that, Ghanaian accomplices of these illegal immigrants will also be dealt with.

This was announced by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Sunday, April 26, 2020, when he addressed the nation on measures put in place to curb the spread of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Ghana.

He observed that despite the closures of the borders, some immigrants are able to enter the country illegally. He said most of these people are noted to be carriers of COVID-19.

President Nana Akufo-Addo gave the warning after reports emerged that 17 out of 67 passengers who were intercepted near Nkwanta by officers of the Immigration Service and other security personnel recently for illegally entering the region from Accra during the period of the lockdown, tested positive for COVID-19.

The President in his eight COVID-19 address on Sunday 26th April 2020 expressed his displeasure over how “a few Ghanaians are aiding some West African nationals to enter our country [Ghana] illegally, despite the closure of our borders.”

He warned that “not only will persons who enter our country illegally be strictly dealt with, but so will Ghanaians who facilitate their entry.”

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“These are unpatriotic acts and must stop. We cannot continue to allow a few persons, who are motivated by their own selfish, money-making interests, to endanger the lives of the rest of the population.”

The president further called on Ghanaians to be each other’s keeper during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The President had earlier closed the country’s borders indefinitely as part of measures to fight the Coronavirus.