At least three people sustained gunshot wounds when personnel of the Ghana Police Service and supporters of the anti-drug abuse taskforce clashed at the Tamale District Magistrate Court on Monday.
The victims, two middle-aged women and a man who were said to have been hit by stray live bullets were rushed to the Tamale Central and Tamale Teaching Hospitals for treatment.
The man, who was hit in the chest, was rushed into the theater at the Tamale Central Hospital at the time of filing this report, the others were said to be responding to treatment.
The supporters of the Taskforce which has cracked down on drug peddlers in the Tamale Metropolis were at the premises of the court to witness the trial of one of the leading drug Peddlers in the region.
It is not exactly known what may have caused the clashes but eyewitnesses accused one police officer of provoking the crowd who were there to support one of the leaders of the anti-drug abuse Taskforce who was appearing before the court as one of the principal witnesses of the case.
Basit Alhassan, an eyewitness told GhanaWeb they were inside the court when they heard the confrontation between the police officer and the crowd.
“We saw them moving towards the court premises, so the lawyers drew the judge’s attention and he quickly adjourned proceedings. Before we realized, a reinforcement team was called in and the moment they arrived, they started shooting into the crowd” he said.
“The crowd in response pelted the police with stones, several motorbikes were hit with stones and bullets while some people were also hit by bullets” Basit added.
Abdul Somed Abdul Rahman Bazini, a leading Member of the Taskforce told GhanaWeb they were disappointed at the police’s reaction, accusing them of acting unprofessionally.
“You all have seen what they did, if they had acted maturely and professionally, this would not have happened,” he said.
Mr Abdul Rahman Bazini accused the police of deliberately shooting to kill people.
“If you see all the bullets that hit the victims, they were shot directly at them and they were all live bullets” he claimed.
The police in a short message posted on Facebook said 13 people were arrested “for attack on Tamale District Court 1”.
The anti-drug abuse taskforce, made up of volunteer young people in Tamale, was formed to clamp down on Drug Peddlers and drug users in the Tamale Metropolis.
It was commissioned by the King and Overlord of Dagbon, Ndan Ya-Na Abukari II, and the team, we’re working together with the Police to end drug abuse in the Northern Region.
Several quantities of these drugs and substances including weed, tramadol, and raphynol have been seized and destroyed by the Taskforce.
Police clashes with residents at the court