Enquiry into ethnic clashes in Kete-Krachi

Kete-Krachi, (V/R) Feb. 19, GNA-An inquiry is to be set up into events leading to the recent clashes between some members of the Zongo and Krachi communities at Kete-Krachi during which three people died. The decision was taken at a joint meeting of the Volta Regional Security Committee and the Krachi-West District Security Committee at Kete-Krachi on Friday.

Mr Kofi Dzamesi, Volta Regional Minister announced this when he addressed Chiefs and community leaders after the meeting. The communities represented included the Kokomba, Ewe, Kotokoli, Dagomba, Basare, Chokosi and Nanumba.

The Minister said recommendations of the committee, which would deal with the immediate and underlying causes of the disturbances, would be implemented with dispatch to bring peace to the area.

Mr. Dzamesi said it was wrong for people to give ethnic or religious connotations to incidents which could be ordinary petty feuds between individuals.

He said an assault was an assault, regardless of who committed it or where it happened and was punishable under the laws of Ghana.

Mr Dzamesi said the Rule of Law must be seen to be working in the area and warned that infractions of the law would be dealt with appropriately by the law enforcement agencies.

Earlier, Mr Dzamesi, who was on a two-day duty tour of the Krachi-East and West districts, paid courtesy calls on Nana Mprah Besemuna III, Paramount Chief of the Krachi Traditional Area and Alhaji Ushau Adams, Chief of Kete-Krachi Zongo Community

At both places, he stressed the need for peaceful co-existence, without which there would be no meaningful development of the area "since no contractor would accept jobs in a conflict zone".

Nana Besemuna said the two communities had lived peacefully for more that two centuries and blamed the current state of affairs on unruly behaviours of a few people who come home for certain functions.

He noted that goodwill must come from both sides, saying, "peace cannot be imposed on us but we must fashion it out ourselves".

" Even our less exposed forefathers co-existed why not us, who say are educated and had travelled round, Nana Besemuna stated".

Alhaji Adams said he was disappointed that "just a fight between two people resulted in a war with loss of lives and property." Police said the fight started over a bicycle after an Under- 12-Schools Gala competition on January 25, this year and continued on two subsequent days of the games.

Mr Mohammed N. A. Adams, Acting Volta Regional Police Commander told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that security would be beefed up as a precautionary measure.

Also on the Minister's entourage were Major Dieu-Donne Gbedawo, Second-In-Command at the 66 Artillery Regiment in Ho and Mr Steve Selormey, Regional Co-ordinating Director (RCD).