Agogo: Police shielding Fulani – MP

The Member of Parliament for Asante Akyem North constituency, Kwadwo Baah Agyeman, has expressed his displeasure about what he sees as the selective manner in which security personnel in the area are evicting Fulani herdsmen and their cattle.

He has accused the District Security Committee (DISEC) of failing to prioritise the security of indigenes in the area vis-à-vis the pastoralists, alleging the security men are bent on retaining some Fulani and their cattle in Agogo.

Mr Baah Agyeman made these comments at a press conference at Agogo moments after meeting with DISEC Monday February 29, 2016 for an update on the security situation in the district.

Agogo has been the epicentre of land use conflicts between herders looking for forage for their cattle and croppers in the forest regions across the country.

The herdsmen have been accused of leading their animals into natives’ farms to feed on and destroy crops, as well as setting such farms on fire. They have been accused of rape and murder in several instances, a situation which has compelled the Ashanti Regional Security Council to expel them, together with their cattle, from the Asante Akyem North District to forestall further violence.

But the MP told journalists: “I am heartbroken. The police have made us realise that they won’t do the job for which they were brought. They have made us understand that some of the cattle are untouchable, and I feel if constituents get wind of it, tensions will escalate.”

According to him, DISEC had stated at the meeting that in spite of the ongoing exercise to rid the area of cattle and their herders, it had been given express instructions by REGSEC to allow some cattle belonging to some unknown persons to remain.

He disclosed that DISEC, chaired by Asante Akyem North District Chief Executive (DCE) Paul Kingsley Avaro, had, therefore, given them the go-ahead to meet the REGSEC to push for an order authorising the removal of all cattle belonging to Fulani from the district.

“They (DISEC) have given us the option to go back to REGSEC to amend the directive to drive out any remaining cattle. That’s the next action we want to take. So, we will go to REGSEC because DISEC takes instructions from the regional head. If we go to the region and they insist that some of the cattle should remain, we will drive them out ourselves.”