A Zongo group has asked the government to intervene and stop discrimination against people within Zongo communities in the acquisition of identity documents.
According to the group, which calls itself the Concerned Zongo Citizens of Ghana, although a number of ethnic groups within Zongos have legal Ghanaian citizenship, they are perceived as aliens and allegedly denied these national identification documents.
Many Ghanaians are currently registering for the Ghana Card as it slowly becomes the most important form of identification in the country.
Speaking at a press conference, the spokesperson of the group, Haruna Maiga, complained that “it is appalling that tribes such as Hausas, Fulanis… who have been in Ghana since pre-colonial times suffer such discrimination.”
“Getting an ECOWAS card, voter’s ID card, passport, and others to enable us to perform Hajj, for example, is a very difficult task for many of our people.”
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“It seems the 1992 constitution which guarantees the fundamental human rights of every Ghanaians does not apply to us,” Haruna Maiga lamented.
He said these concerns had persisted despite formal attempts at redress.
“We have sent countless petitions to all those who matter to help stem the tide of discrimination against Zongo people in this regard, but the problems still persist.”
