President Turns Down Monkey Rehabilitation

The President Flt. Lt. J.J. Rawlings has directed that the proposal by the US based organisation, Friends of Animals, to set up a sanctuary on the Konklobi Island for the repatriation and rehabilitation of monkeys from the United States be rejected unconditionally.

The decision was based on recommendations of the Ministry of Lands and Forestry following a directive isuued by the President last November requesting the Ministry to review proposals for the establishment of a monkey sanctuary at Konklobi in the light of concern expressed by various sections of the public.

A statement from the Office of the President said the country at this present stage of development lacks the requisite technical capacity to properly manage the risks and uncertainties of the reintroduction of the monkeys into the ecosystem.Besides, there has been too much speculation about the actual source and history of the animals without any assured means of verification.

The statement also noted that a lack of adequate prior consultation with the Ministry of Lands and Forestry prevented an examination of the project against the principles and objectives of the 1994 Ghana Forest and Wildlife Policy.

The statement concluded that in accordance with precautionary principle(No.15) adopted by the 1992 earth summit in Rio de Janeiro, the President has directed that Government approval of the project be turned down unconditionally.

Reacting to the news, Dr. Kofi Ellison, who first broke the news and expressed an objection to the shipment had this to stay