Ghanaian government has reacted to claims by a Nigerian investigative journalist, Mr. David Hundeyin, that the Nigerian government was putting pressure on Ghanaian authorities to extradite him to Nigeria.
The Nigerian journalist, Mr. Hundeyin who fled Nigeria in 2020 and following his application in 2021, is currently a refugee in Ghana, where he fled for safety due to alleged “political persecution” by the Nigerian government of which he has been critical.
All that happened under a previous government of Muhammadu Buhari which handed over to the current administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
In a 16-minute clip, the journalist has also accused President Bola Tinubu of plotting a “secret extradition” against him for leaking confidential information about the president’s personal life and for exposing the plan by ECOWAS to invade the Republic of Niger, following a military coup in the country.
Mr. Hundeyin, in a video clip uploaded on his X handle (formerly known as Twitter) on 20 September 2023, claimed the Nigerian government was putting pressure on the Ghanaian government to revoke his refugee status and extradite him to Nigeria.
Reacting in a letter dated 1 October 2023, the Chairperson of the Ghana Refugee Board (GRB), Kenneth Attafuah, a professor and lawyer, told Mr. Hundeyin that it was not true that the board or the Ghanaian government was contacted by the Nigerian government to extradite him.
Mr. Attafuah, said the board decided to reach the journalist after considering his allegations in the video clip during an emergency meeting of the board members on 29 September, and that a UN representative attended the meeting as an observer.
“For the avoidance of doubt, it is not within the contemplation of the GRB to repatriate you to Nigeria. There is absolutely no need or reason for that; your fear of being refouled lacks supporting verification, and is not well-founded.
“The unproven allegations and apparently defamatory statements you make in your video against the sitting president of Nigeria from Ghanaian soil have strong political ramifications and national security potential implications and could engender needless diplomatic row between our two sister countries. You are respectfully urged to desist from such conduct even as you freely practice your trade as a professional journalist,” he said.