News
Docket on gun-wielding chief sent to AG’s Dept. for advice
The docket of the Chief of Domanafo who allegedly ran amok and opened fire on a 19-year-old boy has been forwarded to the Attorney General’s Department for advice.
The boy was said to have been accused by the chief for insubordination.
Chief Superintendent of Police, Sulley Ibrahim, Mampongteng Divisional Police Commander, told this paper, here in a follow-up to the incident.
He said the gun used by the Chief, Nana Owusu Kwarteng, is in the custody of the police, adding it had been licensed.
A sister paper of the Spectator, The Ghanaian Times, reported the incident in its Tuesday, April 28, 2020 edition that the chief was said to have invited the teenager and (Loveline Antwi), to his palace following a fight, but the boy declined to go.
The chief who was said to have armed himself with a gun, rushed to the house of the teenager, fired two warning shots before blasting the chest of the boy, on that fateful Thursday (April 23, 2020).
Speaking to The Spectator here on phone, the victim’s father, Nana Kwame Frimpomg, linguist of the Offinso Paramountcy, claimed that the chief after the shooting, picked the boy, who was bleeding profusely, into his own car to the Ankaase hospital but was asked to send him to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH).
He said the chief went to the Mamponteng Police station to report that he had shot a suspected robber.
According to the father, the victim’s sister was sent to buy some items but some three boys, said to be from the palace, were trailing her.
He said in the process the victim bumped into the scene and the sister told him of what was going on.
The victim, the father said, inquired from the boys why they were trailing her but that resulted in a fight but they were separated by some neighbours.
When a word got to the chief about the brawl, the chief sent some young men to the house of the teenager inviting him to the palace.
The boy declined to go because it was late and the mother of the boy told those sent that she would bring him (boy) along the following day.
The chief got furious as he was informed, so he armed himself and rushed to the boy’s place resulting in the shooting incident.
He was said to have fired two warning shots to scare the household before entering the house.
Chief Superintendent Ibrahim, further confirmed that the chief was detained on Thursday and later released on an enquiry bail.
The police also confirmed that the chief reported a robbery case that led to the shooting.
From Kingsley E.Hope, Kumasi
Troubled and anxious citizens in Damongo of the Savannah Region have expressed concerns about the number of young people, believed to be under the age of 18, involved in ‘shisha’ smoking in pubs and drinking spots within the township.
Eyewitnesses say the minors were seen patronising nightlife venues, where Shisha smoking happen in the open.
The situation has sparked renewed public concern over the enforcement of child protection laws and regulations governing the operations of entertainment centres in the municipality and country as a whole.
An eyewitness, who spoke to The Spectator on conditions of anonymity for security reasons, noted that the situation was becoming increasingly common.
“This is not a one-off incident. It is becoming very common, but residents like us cannot openly report or speak about it because our lives will be at risk,” he said.
Under Ghanaian law, minors were prohibited from patronising Shisha.
Public health experts have consistently warned that shisha use exposes users to harmful substances that can negatively affect brain development, respiratory health, and overall well-being, particularly among young people.
The residents believe the alleged incidents point to broader challenges relating to youth supervision, substance abuse, and weak enforcement of existing regulations and have called on municipal authorities, security agencies, and regulatory bodies to intensify monitoring of pubs and entertainment centres to ensure compliance with the law.
In an effort to address the menace, Mr Salisu Be-Awurbi, the Savannah Regional Minister, has led public education campaigns, engaged security agencies, and supported enforcement actions to address the rising use of illicit substances in the region.
Wura Kelly Seidu Boresah I, the Chief of Damongo, has also called on all stakeholders including parents, community leaders, institutions, and young people to actively support efforts to curb drug abuse, warning that the rising consumption of hard drugs poses a serious health threat to the future of the youth in the Savannah Region.
He also cautioned individuals involved in the sale and distribution of illicit drugs to immediately desist from the practice, stressing that offenders will face arrest and prosecution in accordance with the law.
From Geoffrey Buta, Damongo, Savannah Region
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Dr Theresa Baffour, an advocate for ending violence and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SAHM SAHW Foundation, has said that society plays a critical and pivotal role in breaking the cycle of domestic violence.
According to her, domestic violence is a major contributor of making women, who are mostly the victims, mentally derailed and unable to engage in economic activities.
She said this when the foundation called on the Ga Mantse, Nii Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, to solicit support for the initiative by the “Strong and Healthy Minds, Strong and Healthy Women” (SAHM SAHW) to combat domestic violence within the Ga State.
The visit was occasioned by the fact that domestic violence cases have become quite prevalent in the Ga communities and is retarding growth.
According to her, the canker was an impediment to national development because the victims were usually tortured and would have to go through series of therapies to return to the right state of mind.
Dr Baffour mentioned that Gender-Based Violence (GBV) places a mental toll on women, and was, therefore, important to break the cycle through comprehensive mental health support, crisis intervention and empowerment programmes in communities with high rates of GBV.
This intervention, she underscored, would help in empowering the denigrated victim of domestic violence to soundly heal, build and thrive.
Dr Baffour added that the initiative would provide holistic, trauma-informed mental health care and advocacy for young women affected by domestic violence.
According to her, the above statement would create safe spaces for healing and equipping them with entrepreneurial skills for renewed hope and empowered life.
The Ga Mantse pledged his support for the laudable initiative to combat domestic violence and also acknowledged the need to address it in the Ga State.
Further endorsement came from Justice Julia Naa-Yarley Adjei Amoah, Chief of Staff at the Office of the Ga Mantse, as she commended the team of SAHM SAHW Foundation for taking a bold step to end the canker in the Greater Accra.
She added that it was a step in the right direction to save vulnerable women from torture, stress and emotional abuse.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah
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