A seven member government delegation has been assigned to Gambia to continue investigations into the murder of eight Ghanaians and disappearance of about forty-four others in July, 2005 whilst en route to Europe through Senegal.
According to a release signed by Mr. Jefferson Kwamina Sackey, the Media Relations Officer of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, yesterday, the delegation would depart Accra for the Gambia on Friday 24th August 22, 2007.
The release noted that the delegation comprises experts from the Criminal Investigation Department, the Ghana Police Service, The Attorney General's Department, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Information.
It further stated that the delegation was working in close collaboration with the Ghana Mission in Dakar, Senegal and other contacts in the Gambia on the matter.
It concluded that the final phase of Ghana's investigations is due for completion in September, 2007 after which a final and comprehensive report would be presented to the Government.
The release further intimated that President John Agyekum Kufuor in receiving the report in 2005 sent a high level fact-finding Mission to the Gambia to meet with the Gambia leader, H. E. President Yahyah Jammeh and other high-ranking Gambian Security officials on the matter.
It continued that during the first visit to the Gambia, the Ghanaian fact-finding mission proposed a joint Ghana-Gambia investigative effort to unravel the circumstances leading to the murder/disappearance and it was accepted by the Gambian President, who pledged his country's full co-oporation to unearth the truth.
He continued that a number of visits had been undertaken subsequently to the Gambia, underscoring the Ghana government's commitment to pressurize the Gambian government to consider all means available to deal with the matter.
The release came immediately after The Chronicle newspaper published it in last Tuesday's edition enquiries made from the Minister of Interior, Hon. Kwamena Bartels about the state of the Gambian killings.
