The impact of an increase in the number of foreign retailers in the country’s markets, will eventually affect ordinary Ghanaians if nothing is done reverse the growing trend.
That is according to senior executives of the Ghana Union of Traders Association, [GUTA].
The association has blamed foreigners for the influx of pirated and substandard goods on the Ghanaian market.
They are now cautioning against the rising number of foreigners who come into the country to engage in illegal business like selling in spaces reserved for Ghanaians.
At an emergency press conference to respond to the Ministry of Trade and Industry’s decision to suspend the directive asking all foreigners to leave Ghanaian markets, the first Vice President of GUTA, Osei Brogya called for broader support in their fight to protect local retailers.
“This fight is not just for the traders. I don’t know the number of your relatives who are involved in trading. Definitely or certainly there may be some of your relatives in the trading space. If we are not careful and do not fight this together there will be dire consequences. Look at the populations of Nigerians and Chinese, if we get just 10 percent moving to Ghana, it’s not only the trader who will be doomed you will also be doomed.”
The first Vice President of GUTA Osei Brogya made his comments at an emergency meeting convened by GUTA to react to government’s decision to suspend an earlier directive which ordered foreign retailers to vacate markets meant for Ghanaians.
GUTA had earlier at the same meeting announced that it was boycotting any deliberations led by Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry Carlos Ahenkorah, on getting foreign traders out of Ghana’s retail markets.
The threat follows what the union describes as bad faith on the part of the Ministry of Trade and Industry in unilaterally taking the decision to suspend the exercise to remove foreigners out of Ghana’s retail market.
GUTA has accused a Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Carlos Ahenkorah for making a U-turn without consulting the union.
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