News
Nigerien causes stir…. attacks mallam at K’si Central Mosque
A female migrant from Niger who was looking for a place to lodge at the Central Mosque at Aknatialine, Kumasi, threw decency to the wind and attacked one of the elders from the Zongo Community who she considered a stumbling block to her cause.
This nearly disturbed the relative peace in the area.
The migrant, whose name was not readily available, went to the Central Mosque last Friday with her belongings to look for a place of stay for a while as her colleagues do when they come to Ghana.
The migrant’s anger however reached its peak when the elder, Mallam Gariba Bolga approached her and said that there was no accommodation for her in the premises of the Central mosque as all the female migrants who lodged in the place earlier had already been driven away.
That did not go down well with the woman who fiercely pounced on the elder, pinned him down, amid insults.
The incident happened in the presence of The Spectator Reporter at about 8:30pm, when he saw lot of the youth trooping to the scene.
”Had it not been because the woman was carrying a little child on her back, the youth would have subjected her to severe beatings, though she was not spared some knocks for pouncing on the old man.”
“Allah, she was very fortunate she had a baby, she would have been taught a lesson,” a barber, Sky B, told this reporter.
Some residents of Akwatialine, particularly those close to the Central Mosque had always lived in anxiety following the influx of the migrants from Niger in the wake of the spread of COVID -19.
The number of migrants keeps soaring every day and residents doubted whether they had been tested against the COVID-19.
Niger is bordered by Libya in the North, Benin and Nigeria in the South, Burkina Faso in Southeast, Mali in the West and Chad in the East.
With the closure of the Nigerian border, it is possible for the migrants to come to Ghana through Burkina Faso and the question many of the residents are asking is whether they were tested for COVID-19 before entering.
Residents’ anxiety stemmed from a recent video that went viral on social media of foreigners entering the border at Paga with no official attending to them.
The migrants, mostly women, some nursing mothers and children aged between three and four, “hijacked” the walkway leading to the entrance of the Central Mosque, which they turned into a “kitchen” and a “bathroom”, especially in the evening.
It was in view of this that the elders and opinion leaders decided to sack them from the place.
”They are here in Kumasi as beggars and they are seen mostly “doing serious business” along the Amakom traffic light begging for alms, said a resident.
It is recalled that a sister paper, the Ghanaian Times, in its August 2, 2019 edition, carried a similar story titled, “Migrants Take over Walkway to Kumasi Central Mosque”.
In fact, from 4:30 pm throughout the night, the place was very busy as cooking and washing of clothes and bathing of little children became the order of the day, while they used the porches of the stores close to the mosque as their “bedrooms”.
They wash their clothes and hang them on the fence wall of the mosque.
Earlier, in a chat with some of them, who declined to mention their names, they claimed Ghanaians are religious, easily give alms, and would not harm them.
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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