Conflicting reports on Ghanaian’s death in South Africa disturbing — Jinapor
Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has expressed concern over the conflicting narratives provided by the Ghanaian and South African governments regarding the death of a Ghanaian national in Cape Town, describing the situation as “deeply disturbing.”
Speaking on JoyNews’ The Pulse on Thursday, July 2, Mr Jinapor said it was unacceptable for two sovereign nations to present differing accounts of the circumstances surrounding the death of a Ghanaian citizen, arguing that the inconsistencies raise serious questions about communication and trust between the two countries.
“A fact should be a fact. We should not have different accounts as to what is happening in South Africa,” he said.
“If it is the case that we have sadly lost one of our compatriots in South Africa, that should be established. We cannot be in a situation where two sovereign governments have conflicting reports about the death of a Ghanaian citizen in South Africa. That is most unfortunate and very disturbing.”
His comments follow a public rebuttal by the South African government of claims made by Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs concerning the circumstances surrounding the killing.
In a statement issued on Thursday, July 2, South Africa’s Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Mmamoloko Kubayi, who chairs the country’s Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration, described Ghana’s account of the incident as “factually incorrect,” stating that it was inconsistent with the findings of police investigations.
Earlier, Ghanaian authorities had indicated that the victim sustained fatal injuries on June 30 during anti-immigrant protests linked to xenophobic attacks in South Africa.
However, South African authorities disputed that account, explaining that the Ghanaian was attacked a day earlier, on June 29, at his workplace in what investigators believe was a criminal act unrelated to any demonstrations.
According to the Western Cape Police, the deceased was shot at a barbershop in Nyanga after armed individuals allegedly entered the premises, demanded money and opened fire before fleeing. Police believe the incident may have been motivated by extortion and say investigations are continuing.
Reacting to the diplomatic exchanges, Mr Jinapor warned that the differing accounts reflect a worrying decline in relations between Ghana and South Africa.
“Quite clearly, there is some breakdown of trust between our respective governments, and the bilateral relations between Ghana and South Africa, obviously, are at their lowest,” he stated.
He called for the matter to be elevated beyond the foreign ministers and handled directly by the presidents of both countries to help restore confidence and strengthen bilateral ties.
“I think, most respectfully, that the engagement should be elevated to the level of the presidency — the presidency of Ghana and the presidency of South Africa — to make the effort to normalise this relationship,” he said.
Mr Jinapor added that the ongoing exchanges between the two foreign ministers suggest a deterioration in communication and cooperation.
“If you follow the back-and-forth between our Foreign Minister and the Foreign Minister of South Africa, it is quite clear that there is some breakdown of cordiality and functionality. There doesn’t seem to be a functional relationship between the two foreign ministers,” he added.
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