Ghana has declined to grant a request by Netherlands for the transfer of the mortal remains of a Dutch, Samuel Waterberg, who died recently of Covid-19.
Mr Waterberg, 41, died at the Ga East Municipal Hospital in Accra on Friday March 27, 2020.
His body has since been in the custody of the Ghana Health Service.
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands had written to the Ministry of Health on March 28, 2020, requesting that Mr Waterberg’s body be transferred to private mortuary for burial.
However, in a letter, Ghana’s Health Minister, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, said granting that request would flout Ghana’s public health protocols.
“We regret to inform you that according to our Public Health Regulations, persons who died in such instances are strictly handled and buried by the State. Therefore, unfortunately we are unable to grant your request,” Mr Agyeman-Manu explained in a reply to the Netherlands embassy.
As of Tuesday, March 31, 2020, Ghana has recorded 161 confirmed cases of the global pandemic with 5 deaths and 31 recoveries.
Below is Mr Agyeman-Manu’s reply to the Netherlands Ambassador, Ron Strikker.
More about Mr Waterberg
Samuel Waterberg holds both Ghanaian and Dutch citizenship
He lived in the Netherlands for 22 years before returning to Ghana in 2011.
He was a banker and worked for seven years in the Rabobank in the Netherlands, in the position of Relationship Manager Corporate Client, responsible for medium-large companies and institutions.
He had expertise in areas such as health care, financial service, handling production companies, transport and high-tech companies.
He was regarded as an icon in the Dutch community in Ghana.