The Minority Spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has accused the President of breaching Ghana’s Constitution following his recent announcement of a visa waiver with Jamaica.
“The President erred when he gave those assurances and spoke conclusively as though there is no role for Parliament,” Mr. Ablakwa said.
[contextly_sidebar id=”lhT6Ak37ckzH7z8WQ0HkPrwLBWipBntm”]According to him, the decision was made without recourse to Parliament.
He argued that the recent Supreme Court ruling on the two former detainees from Guantanamo Bay makes the waiver illegal and unconstitutional.
“The President is wrong, and it is important for the government to bring whatever agreement they have signed, with their Jamaican counterparts, to Parliament,” Mr. Ablakwa said.
Ghana-Jamaica relations
During his recent trip to the Carribean, President Nana Akufo-Addo visited Jamaica and a host of other countries and announced a visa waiver between Ghana and Jamaica set to begin on July 1.
According to the President, the visa waiver is a move to strengthen the economic ties and relations between the two countries.
“We cannot have visas standing in the way of those relations so the decision has been taken by my government that, as Ghanaians benefit from visa-free arrangements here in Jamaica, we are also going to provide visa-free arrangements for Jamaicans in Ghana, to facilitate and also make it easier for you to come and join us for the ‘Year of Return,” President Akufo-Addo said
Akufo-Addo and President Andrew Holness of Jamaica also pledged to reactive the Ghana-Jamaica Permanent Joint Commission.
The commission has been inactive for some time, but Akufo-Addo explained that the Commission will serve as a legal framework for conducting business between the two countries.
Currently, citizens from about 20 countries can enter Ghana without a visa. Countries in this list include Cuba and Uganda.
