Former presidential aide and legal expert, Obol Okoi Obono-Obla, has strongly condemned recent protests in Ghana during which demonstrators branded Nigerians as criminals and called for their expulsion.
Speaking in an exclusive interview on Wednesday in Calabar, Obono-Obla described the blanket labeling of Nigerians as criminals as defamatory, xenophobic, and a threat to regional unity.
“You cannot brand someone a criminal without a verdict from a court of competent jurisdiction,” he said. “To suggest that all Nigerians are criminals and should be expelled from Ghana amounts to defamation.”
He cautioned that yielding to such “mischievous agitation” would not only undermine Ghana-Nigeria diplomatic ties but also violate the principles of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), particularly its protocols on free movement of persons and goods.
Obono-Obla expressed concern that the protesters’ sentiments represent a dangerous generalization and a fundamental misunderstanding of criminal law. He stressed that under universally recognized legal norms, criminal responsibility is individual, not collective.
“There is no principle of vicarious liability in criminal law,” he explained. “You cannot hold an entire nationality accountable for the actions of a few individuals.”
Highlighting the long-standing relationship between Ghana and Nigeria, he reminded both nations of their shared obligations under ECOWAS.
“Nigerians in Ghana, like Ghanaians in Nigeria, enjoy visa-free movement as guaranteed by ECOWAS treaties. It would be a grave injustice to target an entire community based on isolated allegations.”
He called on Ghanaian authorities to address the situation with fairness, restraint, and respect for regional integration, warning that any discriminatory action could trigger wider diplomatic consequences and undermine West Africa’s cohesion.
