The Foundation for Security Development in Africa (FOSDA) has indicated that the recent killing of security men in the Upper West Regional capital, Wa, is due to the neglect of the police and other security apparatus in the country.
In a statement copied to GhanaWeb, FOSDA stated that because of the low rate of crime in Wa, the security agencies lost focus, which led to the infiltration of criminals.
“FOSDA’s daily media monitoring on violent incidents has captured six incidents of violence in the Upper West region since December 2021 with 2 casualties. One of the recorded violent cases was a murder case recorded on 9th September 2022. This makes the Upper West Region and the Wa Municipality a low violent area hence the neglect with regards to policing and other security services.
“We are alarmed that criminals have taken advantage of the peaceful environment in the municipality and perpetrated this atrocity on the blind side of the police and other security agencies. It is important that the issue is dealt with swiftly to restore the confidence of the people in the police and enhance the feeling of safety in the area,” parties of the statement read.
The foundation, however, commended the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, for deploying 350 police officers to the area to investigate and solve the mystery.
Also, the foundation recommended that the security agencies in Ghana must ensure that there is enough security presence in all parts of the country even in low crime areas to minimise the probability of crimes like the ones happening in Wa and other parts of the country now.
Seven security guards have, since April 2022, reportedly been abducted by unknown assailants in the Upper West Regional capital. The police, in collaboration with a team constituted by the Wala Traditional Council, have found 4 dead bodies with missing organs.
The 4 bodies have been deposited at the Upper West Regional Hospital morgue by the Special Purpose Intelligence and Investigation team dispatched by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akuffo Dampare.
The Ghana Police Service has also indicated that a pathologist from the Police Hospital has been deployed to assist with the investigation.
It has also arrested one suspect who is alleged to be involved in the series of murders.
According to the police, the suspect, Kankani Adongo, is alleged to be involved in at least the recent murder of a 58-year-old security man.
In a post shared on Facebook, Monday, the police said that Adongo was arrested with the help of some community search parties.
Read the full statement by FOSDA below:
You can also watch this episode of People & Places here:
IB/DA
Members of the Wa community protesting recent murders