Ghana must become “comfortable enough” for its citizens to live in, a member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) communications team has said, following the deaths of two Ghanaians in the United States.
Kwasi Kwarteng said improving living conditions and creating more opportunities at home could reduce the number of people feeling compelled to travel abroad in search of better prospects.
“Even though Ghana may not necessarily be like America, we must make this country comfortable enough for people to live in,” he told TV3’s Key Points on Saturday, November 7.
Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Smith, also called on Ghanaians in the diaspora to return and invest in the local economy, creating jobs for young people.
“We need to help Ghana become economically strong so that we can create opportunities for people to live better lives here,” he said on the programme.
Mr Smith warned Ghanaians travelling to the US to pay close attention to where they live, saying the Ghanaian embassy could not know the location of every Ghanaian in the country, despite its responsibility to assist citizens.
His comments followed the deaths of 24-year-old Joseph Owusu and 15-year-old Javits Badu Nkansah Frimpong in the Bronx, New York, within the past week.
Owusu’s body was found at a dumpsite after he had reportedly been missing for about two weeks. Surveillance footage sighted on November 6, 2026, and shared by ABC7 showed two people believed to be adult men removing a large black duffel bag from the boot of a white saloon car.
The pair dragged the bag on to the pavement before leaving. The next day, another man was filmed placing it on a metal stretcher and wheeling it away. A man searching for scrap metal later discovered Owusu’s body.
His brother, Kojo Yeboah, said the family wanted answers.
“I need justice for Joseph. I want the truth to come out because my brother didn’t deserve to die the way he did. He’s only 24. He had a lot of living to do. I cried till my nose was bleeding because I couldn’t eat,” he said.
Frimpong was shot on the morning of Thursday, October 29, while walking to school. He died at St Barnabas Hospital. His mother has since arrived in New York and is seeking justice, while no arrest has been announced.
New York Police Department Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said on Monday, November 2, that three hooded people wearing surgical masks chased Frimpong, shot him, collected the shell casings and escaped on a subway train.
Detectives are considering robbery, mistaken identity and school bullying as possible motives, but police have not identified a suspect or said which line of inquiry they favour.
President John Dramani Mahama said on Thursday, November 5, that the US needed to confront gun violence and the ease with which people could buy firearms. He was speaking at a meet-the-press session at Jubilee House after returning to Ghana.
“It is part of the amendments in their constitution that give citizens the right to bear arms. So, anybody can go to a gun shop to buy one,” he said.
Mr Mahama also pointed to mental-health pressures, saying someone who appeared well dressed could still be under severe stress before turning to violence.
Mr Smith said racism and racial discrimination remained a concern in the US. He revealed that his son had been bullied at school and that he had reported the matter to the authorities, threatening to remove him if action was not taken.
“Nobody can convince me that racism doesn’t exist in America; it exists. It still exists. My son has been tormented,” he said.
He added that his son had been expected to use American slang from his first day at school, leaving some African children feeling isolated.
“They make the kids feel lonely,” he said.
Ghana’s New York mission has visited Frimpong’s family and was instructed to provide assistance. The Foreign Affairs Ministry is paying for his mother’s travel, while police have asked anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1-800-577-TIPS.
