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Claim: Multiple sources allege that Nana Asante Bediatuo, the Secretary to Ghana’s president, Nana Akufo-Addo, has told the Canadian High Commission in the country to limit visa issuance to Ghanaians.
Verdict: False. DUBAWA’s findings have revealed that the secretary to Ghana’s president did not make such comments. Also, Nana Asante Bediatuo has disputed the claim days after it surfaced online and described it as “fake.”
Full Text
Multiple sources say that Nana Asante Bediatuo, the Secretary to Ghana’s president, Nana Akufo-Addo, has told the Canadian High Commission in the country to limit visa issuance to Ghanaians.
Accra-based Amnewsworld reported on May 16, 2024:
“A recent development that has stirred significant attention, Asante Bediatuo, executive secretary to the president, has secretly advised the Canadian Embassy in Ghana to reduce the rate at which it issues visas to Ghanaian nationals.”
According to the online news portal, Mr Bediatuo reportedly “made the announcement at a secret meeting with H.E Christopher Thornley claiming Ghana is losing a lot of young, vibrant workforce to other countries.”
Another online news portal, ThinkNewsOnline, reported on May 18, 2024, that:
“In a controversial development, Asante Bediatuo, Executive Secretary to the President of Ghana, has reportedly advised the Canadian Embassy in Ghana to decrease the rate at which it issues visas to Ghanaian nationals.”
The claim has been shared wildly on social media here, here, and here.
Writing on the matter on May 18, 2024, an X user (formerly Twitter) wrote:
“First, they increased the passport fee from Ghc100 to Ghc644, so you can’t apply. Now, they’re asking the Embassy not to grant you a Visa to travel. These guys want to impoverish y’all.”
Also, commenting on the matter, a Facebook user wrote:
“Something to be bothered about? Executive Secretary to the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, admonishes the Canadian Embassy to reduce the frequency of issuing out visas to Ghanaians. Late Joe Lartey will say, “Over to you.”
DUBAWA decided to investigate the claim because of its campaign against misinformation and disinformation in the country.
Verification
To investigate this claim, the researcher conducted a keyword search on Google. The findings revealed that no major news outlet reported on the issue. With the controversial nature of such comments attributed to Mr Bediatuo, major credible media outlets would have made publications on the issue.
However, DUBAWA found two publications by thinknewsonline.com and amnewsworld.com on
on May 18, 2024, and May 16, 2024, respectively.
Screenshot of the publication on ThinkNewsOnline
Further checks by DUBAWA revealed that thinknewsonline.com pulled down the story days after the publication.
Further, DUBAWA observed several media reports and publications on May 22, 2024, stating that Nana Asante Bediatuo has denied making such statements. Find the reports here, here, and here.
In a statement, his legal team urged the general public to treat such publications with disdain.
“We are instructed to inform the public that the publication referred to supra is palpably false, and the same should be disregarded and treated with the contempt it deserves,” the statement signed by Gary Nimako Marfo stated.
DUBAWA contacted the Canadian High Commission in Ghana to ascertain if Nana Asante Bediatuo made such statements in a meeting with Mr Thornley. However, no feedback was available at the time of filing this report.
Conclusion
The claim that Nana Bediatuo urged the Canadian High Commission to limit visa issuance to Ghanaians is false.
