Former president, John Dramani Mahama has urged minority tribal communities facing nationality challenges to assert their rights during voter registration or any registration process.
Mahama emphasized that minority ethnic groups in Ghana, such as the Fulanis and Hausas, have made significant contributions to the nation’s formation and progress, deserving recognition as Ghanaians.
In a viral video on Sunday, September 17, 2023, the former president and the presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for the 2024 elections, expressed his view that it is unjust for officials from the Electoral Commission(EC) or any registration personnel to reject individuals solely based on their identification with these minority groups.
“… at that time there was no country called Ghana. The Fulanis brought cattle to sell, the Zambramas were here, the Gaos were here, the Mosis were here – everybody was here long before we knew there would be a country called Ghana.
“If you look at those who fought in the 2nd World War, go to Kumasi there is a memorial there, and read the names of those who went and fought and died. You would see all those different northern tribes, they all went and fought in the 2nd World War and at that time there was no country called Ghana,” he said.
The former president emphasized that every individual, regardless of their ethnic background, possesses the right to be acknowledged as a Ghanaian.
He further pointed out that the ancestors of these ethnic communities had been in Ghana long before the nation itself was established.
“As so today, when we have a country called Ghana, all of us make up that country. Ghana is a country united in diversity because it is the various ethnic groupings that make Ghana stronger
“… when it comes to registration and you mention your name and the ask who are you, you say ‘I’m a Fulani’. They would say oh, you are not a Ghanaian, we are challenging you. You say ‘Oh I’m a Hausa’, you are from northern Nigeria. Everybody in this country came from somewhere, we all migrated and came,” he said.