Nigerian National Jailed For Posing As Ghanaian To Get Ghana Card

• A Nigerian national has been sentenced by a court in Kumasi for trying to acquire a Ghana Card meant for Ghanaian citizens.
• Usman Emmanuel has been fined GH¢3,000 by a Magistrate's Court for presenting a Ghanaian birth certificate for the Ghana Card.
• The National Identification Authority has cautioned foreign nationals against trying to get the Ghana Card meant for Ghanaians.

The National Identification Authority (NIA), issuers of the Ghana Card, has said one of its officers has triggered the arrest and sentencing of a Nigerian national who tried to secure the Ghana Card.

In a press statement published on its website on March 13, 2022, the NIA said the Asokore Mampong District Magistrate court, has sentenced Usman Emmanuel, the Nigerian citizen and a resident of Sawaba in Kumasi, for falsely representing himself as a Ghanaian to acquire a Ghana Card contrary to law.

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“Carrying a Ghanaian Birth Certificate, Usman Emmanuel claimed he was a Ghanaian, hence eligible to register for the Ghana Card. Having gone through the registration process, Usman Emmanuel was left to be issued with the Ghana Card. It was at this point the Regional Registration Officer (RRO) of NIA in the Ashanti Region suspected the applicant was not a Ghanaian.

“The RRO quickly handed him over to the Police CID at Adum, Kumasi, for further investigation. The investigation established that despite being in possession of a valid Ghanaian Birth Certificate, Usman Emmanuel was not a Ghanaian,” the NIA said in the release.

According to the statement, Usman Emmanuel was arraigned before the Asokore Mampong District Magistrate Court and charged with the offence of falsely providing information about himself contrary to section 17 (C) of the National Identification Authority Act 707 (Act 2006).

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“At the end of the trial, the court found him guilty of the offence and was sentenced to a fine of 250 penalty units, equivalent to GH¢3,000.00 or in default 6 months imprisonment,” the statement added.

The NIA said in the statement that any foreign national, legally resident in Ghana, and with a valid resident permit can register for the Non-Citizen Card which is issued at various designated centres across the country including the NIA Headquarters.

NIA also cautioned foreigners against attempting to register for the Ghana Card (Card meant for citizens only), warning that they will be arrested and prosecuted.

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Source: YEN.com.gh