The prominent Ghanaian YouTuber Wode Maya and some immigration officers were involved in a fight on the Togo side of the border, when Madam Abla Dzifa Gomashie, the MP for Ketu South, intervened. A popular video that has been going viral on social media documented the incident.
In a video posted online by Wode Maya, the MP expressed vehement displeasure at the restriction of freedom of movement throughout the continent, particularly in the ECOWAS subregion.
The former actress and deputy minister for the creative arts argued that unfettered travel within and between countries should be made possible, just as it was in the days before colonialism split the world’s nations apart.
“These back and forth between border security officials and persons travelling across our frontiers – I mean not only Ghana and Togo but across West Africa and the rest of the continent, my brother, is becoming something else.
“My brother, this back-and-forth between border security personnel and people crossing our borders is changing. I don’t just mean between Ghana and Togo; I mean throughout West Africa and the rest of the continent.
African Continental Free Trade Area and Unrestricted Movement (AfCFTA)
The current situation and earlier events, which occurred not only along Ghana’s border with Togo but also elsewhere on the continent and in the subregion, call into question the willingness of member nations to uphold the ECOWAS Protocols on Free Movement of Persons, Goods, and Services and the promotion of Free Trade and Business among member nations under the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) regime.
In a television interview, Wode Maya vowed to keep fighting for an Africa without borders so that people might travel freely between nations without encountering difficulties like those in Togo.
He shared some of his worst encounters, like getting slapped when trying to enter the Gambia and being told to pay $250 before entering the Congo, while he and his crew were traveling by road from Benin.
Wode Maya promised to continue his campaign against the threat until continental Heads of State came to a workable agreement.