46 Ghanaians still stranded in South Africa, but we can’t even beg gov’t to evacuate them – Returnees

The leader of the Aggrieved South Africa Evacuees, Michael Addo, says 46 Ghanaians remain stranded in South Africa as controversy surrounding the government’s evacuation exercise makes it difficult for the group to seek further assistance.

He said the ongoing public debate and criticism on social media had left the returnees reluctant to approach the government for help, despite the plight of other Ghanaians still hoping to return home.

Speaking at a media briefing, Mr Addo expressed frustration over what he described as the humiliation of evacuees amid calls for accountability over the exercise.

“We have other brothers and sisters who are still over there who are willing to come. Currently, we still have 46 people who were supposed to be on the flight, but because of what is currently spreading on social media, we don’t even have the balls to beg the government to go and rescue them,” he stated.

He argued that the controversy was compounding the emotional distress of those who had returned after experiencing xenophobic attacks in South Africa.

“While we bravely recover from our trauma and pain, the very society we expect to protect us has reduced our pain to humiliation under the guise of seeking accountability,” he lamented.

The comments come amid public scrutiny of the reported GH¢49.72 million spent to evacuate 1,964 Ghanaians from South Africa.

Mr Addo accused some members of the Minority, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and sections of the media of pursuing what he described as attacks against the returnees and the government.

He called for an end to the criticism, while acknowledging the importance of accountability in the use of public funds.

“We are here to seek answers and demand an immediate end to the baseless attacks on us and the government that was sympathetic towards us,” he said.

Mr Addo also expressed appreciation for the government’s intervention, noting that Ghanaians had endured xenophobic attacks in South Africa for years without similar assistance.

“We have experienced xenophobia for many years, but this is the first time a government has taken our plight into account and come to our rescue,” he added.

He maintained that scrutiny of the evacuation expenditure should not undermine the dignity of the returnees or discourage efforts to assist the 46 Ghanaians who remain in South Africa.