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'Not All Of Us Are Criminals'—Nigerians In Ghana Cry Out

This bad image has affected the country and law-abiding citizens in the Diaspora.

Over the years, Nigerians have been tagged as lawless, notorious, and fraudulent in Nigeria and other parts of the world because of crime.

This bad image has affected the country and law-abiding citizens in the Diaspora.

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MyNigeria TV engaged some members of the Nigerian community in Ghana, who said they are in the country to make an honest living.

They encouraged locals to treat them with respect and be given the needed opportunities to thrive.

Ike, a phone seller at Kwame Nkrumah Circle, stated that it is unfair that the 'bad nuts' in their country make Ghanaians see all of them in a bad light.

"Normally, I don't feel okay with it, and I don't feel comfortable with it because whatever affects a nation also affects the individual. Whatever is affecting the country, Nigeria is also affecting me. It's like a family; if your family has a bad name, even if you are the good ones in the family, it will affect you in your area of life. Many Nigerians are not doing well when they leave the country, and it is affecting the people doing legal businesses."

Another Nigerian, who deals in mobile case trade, added that many Nigerians who come into the country are indeed involved in Internet fraud.

"The bad image is not helping us at all because as a Nigerian, before you get a job here, it's not easy. Most Nigerians here involve in 'yahoo yahoo' because things are not easy," he said.

Abaeze, a father of two, stated that he feels Ghanaians genuinely hate Nigerians.

"We are one family; Ghana and Nigeria are one family, but the way I'm seeing things now, I am not happy. What I see now is that Ghanaians hate Nigerians," he says.

According to Chibuike, Nigerians are good businessmen, good scholars, and good all-around, so they should be treated as such.

A Nigerian laptop seller in the area also added his voice by saying that Nigerians in Ghana are doing legal businesses and are struggling to earn their daily bread.

"I won't say that Nigerians are not committing any crime here. There are honest-hearted ones that are doing genuine business. Many Nigerians are here hustling for their daily bread, but it is unfortunate that the Ghanaian government just closed Nigerian shops for no reason," he lamented.