Diasporas call for amendment of the citizenship Act

Accra, July 12 GNA- The Diaspora Vote Committee (DVC) on Wednesday called on the government to take a second look at the Citizenship Act of 2000 (Act 591) that bars Ghanaians of dual nationality from holding public offices in the country.

The group said the amendment of the relevant sections of the Act would ensure meaningful participation of Ghanaians abroad in the nation's development.

Dr Agyenin Boateng, Chairman of the Legal Committee of the DVC was addressing a Press Conference in Accra on issues relating to the Electoral Commission (EC) and proposals to develop implementation plans for Representation of People's Amendment Act (ROPAA).

Dr Boateng warned that failure by the EC to promulgate the necessary legislative instrument to Parliament for approval to allow Ghanaians residents overseas to register to vote in the 2008 elections from their countries of residence may result in the DVC seeking a legal recourse to compel the EC's performance of its constitutional obligations.

"Any group that tries to deprive us of our constitutional rights, we would make sure we use the proper framework to fight our course", he said.

He called on the government to create a separate Ministry for Ghanaians in the Diaspora or expand the current Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Affairs to facilitate the engagements of the growing number of Ghanaians abroad in the nation's development.

He appealed to all the political parties and other stakeholders to come out with proposals to make the implementation of the ROPAA a success as well as a unifying experience in the supreme interest of the nation.

Professor Kwame Frempong, Member of the Legal Committee of the DVC expressed the readiness of the group to work with the EC in developing a regime for the implementation that would borrow from the experience of other nations, particularly those of Africa.

He said following the example of Senegal, the DVC would agree to a transitional implementation for the 2008 national elections that would limit the Ghana Diaspora Vote to the Presidential election only. Prof. Frempong also called on the government to speed up the approval process for the application for dual citizenship.