By Charles Gbayor in Harper, Maryland County
It appears President George Weah’s quest to land Liberians dual citizenship is a tough sell, as more lawmakers express their opposition to passing a law to grant dual citizenship in Liberians. One of those adding his voice of opposition to the debate is Maryland County Caucus Chairman J. Gbleh Bo Brown.
Speaking to the media recently in Harper City,Maryland County, Sen. Browne said he “will not and will never support dual citizenship” in Liberia. He told a local radio station in Harper City, Maryland County, that giving non-Liberians citizenship will create the medium for them to commits crime and go back to their countries of birth.
Browne said Liberia would be unable to go after those who would commit crimes and bring them before the courts in Liberia. He did not say how does Liberia deal with foreign nationals who naturalize as citizens in Liberia but still maintain their citizenship in the countries of birth.
Currently, there are 23 countries in Africa that have dual citizenship. They are Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cote d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Gabon, Gambia, and Ghana. Others are Kenya, Lesotho, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, and Rwanda. The rest are Sao tome & Principe, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Togo, Tunisia and Uganda.
Research shows that the Ghanaian government in 2000 adopted the Dual Citizenship Act, which allows Ghanaians to hold other citizenships. According to the Act, non-Ghanaians who reside in the country must apply for citizenship by registration. “Individuals can also apply for Ghanaian citizenship if they have contributed in any documented area that promotes national interest. In 2002, parliament passed the Citizenship Act 2002 (Act 591), which allows individuals with U.S. Citizenship to apply for dual citizenship,” the research shows.
The Nigerian government also adopted dual citizenship in 1999 under the leadership of former President General Ibrahim Babaginda. The law allows any person who is a Nigerian citizen by birth can acquire citizenship of other countries.
Then in 2007, Sierra Leone officially adopted dual citizenship. The bill was passed in November 2006as an amendment to the 1973 Citizenship Act. Under the amended law, Sierra Leoneans can retain their citizenship status or restore it if they had lost the status under the previous law.
Also, la Cote d’Ivoire accepted dual citizenship in 2004. Ivorians can acquired dual citizenship by birth, or children born in the nation to foreign parents can acquire the citizenship of Ivory Coast. In August 2013, parliament passed legislation that allows foreigners to acquire Ivorian citizenship upon marrying an Ivory Coast citizen. The law also allows foreign-born citizens who have lived reside in the West African nation before independence to become citizens alongside their descendants. Individuals born in the nation between 1961 and 1973 and their children also qualify for citizenship. Cote d’Ivoire has restrictions on holding office as president & vice-president of the republic; president and vice-president of parliament – speaker and deputy speaker of parliament for foreigners who become citizens.
