Government will not pay ransom for captured Ghanaians
The lives of four Ghanaians hang in the balance if an $8 million ransom being demanded by Somali pirates is not paid by Thursday, November 10, 2011.
The four are part of 24 other nationals who captured in March 2010 as the vessel they were travelling on, MV IcebergI, was captured along the coast of Somalia.
A son of one of the four Ghanaians, Francis Koomson Jnr claims he has information his father and all the captives will be killed on Thursday if the ransom is not paid.
“He [his father] called us yesterday telling us that the pirate commander will be coming on board today and if nobody comes to their aid they will be executed today.”
He said the pirates are demanding $8 million from the ship owners or risk losing the lives of captives who have been in the custody of the pirates for several months.
According to him, his father is becoming weaker by the day due to inhuman treatments being meted out to them by the pirates.
Koomson Jnr. appealed to government to pay the ransom amount in order for his dad and the other captives to be freed.
However, the Mills-led administration has said it will not pay the ransom being demanded by the Somali pirates in an attempt to secure the four Ghanaians
Government’s decision came to light when the Member of Parliament for Weija Shirley Ayorkor Botchway asked an urgent question on the floor of Parliament demanding to know what government was doing to secure the release of the captives.
In response, the Foreign Affairs Minister, Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni, said government was doing all it could to secure the release of the captives.
He said government has a zero tolerance ransom payment policy and could, therefore, not help beyond continuing to put pressure on the ship owners to help secure the release of the captives.
He explained such payment would only set a bad precedent which would make Ghanaian crew members aboard any ship prone to attacks by Somali or any other pirates across the world.
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