A National Affairs and Economic Development Analyst, Shepherd Issifu Ali, has strongly condemned attempts by public figures to describe Ghanaian women involved in the ongoing Russian exploitation scandal as “cheap.”
He said such remarks are reckless, dehumanizing, and a dangerous distraction from deeper national failures.
Reacting to comments made by a section of the Ghanaian public and social media users, Ali described the remarks as “uncalled for” emphasizing that the issue reflects much deeper concerns than the name callings and body shaming.
According to him, the women caught up in the controversy involving Russian man Vyacheslav Trahov should not be reduced to insults or mockery.
“These women are not cheap,” he stated. “What happened reflects exploitation, vulnerability, and systemic weaknesses. A responsible society protects its vulnerable citizens instead,” Ali noted.
Meanwhile, the Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George has assured that the Russian man identified as Yaytseslav who is seen in viral videos engaging in conversation with some Ghanaian women and later luring them to his hotel, will be made to face the law.
According to him even though the individuals involved are not minors and had made decisions on their own, they will be protected by government as citizens of the country.
In a media engagement at the launch of the Horlap Innovation Experience Mr Nartey George said, “What the Cyber Security Authority and the Ministry of Communication is interested in, is not the moral judgment of the individuals but in the non-consensual sharing of the videos that were posted online, that is a crime.”
He assured that his outfit will ensure that the gentleman is brought back to Ghana to face the law.
“That gentleman will be looked for, we will activate every resource at our disposal, working with Interpol the way we’ve worked with Interpol to extradite Ghanaians to other jurisdiction. We will request the Russian authorities and that’s why I’m inviting the Russian Ambassador to work with our law enforcement agencies.”
He added that recording a citizen without their consent and later posting online constitutes a crime under the Cyber Crime offences Act CSA Act 1038 of Ghana passed in 2020 by Parliament.
“We are working on it and whether we have the gentleman or not, I intend for us to file a full prosecution, we will have a quick representation before the court, trial him in absentia and get judgement if he fails to show up. We will not let this go,” Mr George stated.
The Minister therefore urged all citizens to stay vigilant.
“Our Ghanaian men and women, we urge caution. We need to be minded about some of these things and be careful. But on the legal part, we will do our part,” he assured.
