You’re just criminals – Bawumia tells Togolanders

The Western Togoland agitators are mere criminals chasing after a nonexistent nation, Ghana’s Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has said.

Different secessionist groups who claim to be Western Togolanders, have launched attacked in different parts of the Volta Region in recent times.

In the first attack on Friday, 25 September 2020, they seized two police stations, took the officers hostage and stole weapons from the armouries after blocking entry and exit points in the Volta Region.

Subsequently, they torched two buses at the Ho STC yard on Tuesday, 29 September 2020.

Speaking on the issue, Dr Bawumia said: “This criminal behaviour in Ho, in the Volta Region that is going on, I think all Ghanaians should be worried, not just me”.

He told Asempa FM Wednesday, 30 September 2020, that: “We are a very peaceful nation”, adding: “In fact, the most peaceful nation in West Africa”, according to the “global peace index and we’ve been independent since 1957 and generally, Ghana has not been a place where you’d find these sorts of issues coming up”.

“But recently, you’ve heard people talking that Ghana is not truly Ghana and I don’t understand it”, a perplexed Dr Bawumia said. “I want to understand where they are coming from. That’s why I think it’s just criminal because the history doesn’t support what they are purporting”, he asserted.

Narrating the history behind Ghana’s nationhood, Dr Bawumia recalled that “there was a plebiscite in 1956 prior to Ghana’s independence for the people of the then-Western Togoland to decide whether or not they wanted to join Ghana”.

“The people included people in Ho, I think the Kpando area, Buem, Krachi, Gonja, Mamprusi, Dagomba.

“And there was a majority in joining Ghana and in the legislature, there was a discussion as to what type of Ghana are we going to have? A unitary Ghana or a federalist Ghana?

“I think at that time, Nkrumah favoured a unitary Ghana; the NLM, at that time, favoured a federalist Ghana.

“But the debate took place in parliament and the vote took place and we opted for a unitary Ghana. So, at that time, the boundaries of Ghana were determined. In fact, most of the southern Volta was not part of the plebiscite.

“The Anlos and all of that, they were not part, they were all in the Gold Coast.

“So, today, if you say Western Togoland, it must be a figment in your imagination. It does not exist”, Dr Bawumia said.

According to him, “the Mamprusis are part of Ghana, they’ve not expressed interest in going anywhere; the Gonjas are part of Ghana, they have not expressed any interest in going anywhere; the Oti people are part of Ghana, they’ve not expressed any interest of going anywhere. So, where is this figment of Western Togoland?” he asked.

“Is it Ho, or some people in Ho or some people in Kpando or Kpeve? Where is it? So, we just want to carve out Ho out of Ghana or Kpeve out of Ghana and make it a country? It’s a figment of their imagination because there is no legal basis for those demands.

“So, it’s criminal. So, Ghana must come together. We are one country. This is not a political party matter. We are one country. We are different peoples in one country and the land of Ghana is determined.

“There’s no issue about losing one inch of the land of Ghana across, it’s already determined. So, there is a clear situation that we have some criminals are trying to misrepresent history and engage in criminal activity.

“And, so, what you are seeing, the attacks you are seeing are nothing but criminal activity and from that point of view, all of us should be worried and we should do everything and we will do everything that we can from the security perspective”, Dr Bawumia noted.

He added that: “From where I sit, I know that the security agencies are doing a lot. It’s not everything that we can say on air but I am very confident and comfortable with the work and reports that the security agencies are giving. In fact, they foiled things that could have been worse; they are working and we need to support them more”.