At the regional delegates conference of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) in Tamale on 3rdJanuary 2010, there were reports of gun shots at the place. This allegation of a gun shot spread so fast like a bush fire in the middle of severe winds! Initial reports as carried by Joyfm on that day added “unconfirmed reports say one of them has been shot dead”. When I read that news item on joyfm I immediately called Tamale to ascertain the veracity or other wise of what I read in the news. Tamale is my biological home town so I am always curious about news from that place. The outright information I had was that, either confirmed or unconfirmed nobody died! Then I said Thank God!
Later in the evening the Tamale Metropolitan Police Commander was heard on joynews at six say that, he was shot, went to the hospital, treated of gun shot, discharged, and was to return to the hospital the following day for X-ray to determine what kind of gun was use to shoot at him! He quickly added during that interview on joyfm that, he knew for sure that, it was not an AK47 riffle. He nonetheless said he would leave the issue of what bullet it was that hit him to Medical Doctors at the Tamale Teaching hospital.
Then on the 4th day of January, 2010, the northern regional police commander was heard in an interview on joyfm say that, medical reports from the Tamale Teaching hospital as conducted by medical doctors was inclusive, as they could not determine whether the Tamale Metropolitan Police commander was shot with a gun or not? Never mind that, initial reports categorically said a gun and the Tamale Police commander was himself heard say he was shot with a gun on joy news at 6pm on the 3rd January, 2009 on the hand!
Let us not forget that, the emphasis of the police was centred on the Tamale metropolitan police commander even though a member of the NPP was on admission and still on admission at the time of writing this article on the 5th January 2010 receiving treatment for alleged gun shots.
I honestly find it extremely very difficult to reconcile certain things; a bullet is a bullet. Any X-ray or what ever should be able to tell at once if anybody was shot with a gun or even has a bullet resting anywhere in the body. Is it not so ludicrous that, the police in Tamale are now saying that, medical reports could not tell at once if it was bullets that injure the Tamale Metropolitan Police Commander or not? that is to say if he was injured in the first place!
The other mysterious issue is that, even though the case of shooting and injuring became a case for Medical officers at the Tamale Teaching Hospital, joyfm did not talk or interview any medical officer at the Tamale Teaching Hospital! The Tamale Police commander and the Regional police Commander became “medical doctors” and commenting on the injury. The question is, why didn’t Joyfm speak to the hospital authorities but just relying on the Police for information not about the shooting but about the injury when they were themselves being accused of been originators of the shooting?
What must be explained to readers is that, some persons at the venue of the shooting had alleged that, the shooting was done by the police, and a stray bullet hit the hand of the Tamale Metropolitan Police Commander and the NPP activist.
The strange happenings about the inability of Doctors at the Tamale Teaching Hospital to determine what injured the Policeman and the NPP activist’s needs further probing. Will it be safe to say that, the Tamale Police is trying to cover something up using the media?
Most people are worried about the security of Ghanaians under president Mills. Such issues as a policeman and a citizen of Ghana being injured and it can not be fathom what implement was used to injure them should be a source of worry to all and sundry.
I am of the strongest conviction that, something is being hidden from all of us. The truth of what happened at the NPP regional conference must be told. We must be provided with answers to who actually fired a shot at the place? Was it a stray bullet from the police that hit their own commander? Was it a firing from some of the NPP supporters who had a confrontation with the police? We need an answer as well to why Medical officers at the Tamale Teaching hospital could not tell what injured the Tamale Police Commander and the NPP activists.
I did like to suggest to the media to endeavour to interview the right persons in situations like this. I find it very difficult to understand why the Tamale Police had to talk on medical issues for Doctors of Tamale while the doctors were not given the chance to talk for themselves!
While waiting for answers to these questions; the question to ask is who shot a gun at the NPP regional congress in Tamale on the 3rd January 2010?
Akilu Sayibu, UK
Email: [email protected]