Edward Asadu, who was contesting his disqualification in the ongoing NPP constituency elections, was said to have stormed the venue with some well-built men to disrupt the process.

He was also alleged to have fired gunshots when he realized that his name and picture did not appear on the ballot paper.

Mr. Asadu’s actions were said to have delayed the voting process for some hours after police and military personnel intervened to restore order.

Citi News understands that the aggrieved aspirant claimed to have gone through the vetting process successfully, but a letter issued by the District Chief Executive for the area, Francis Oti Boateng, suggested that he was disqualified.

The aspirant, who was not enthused with the decision was said to have ordered some well-built men to cause disturbances at the venue.

He has been arrested, and is currently in the custody at the Konongo District Police station.

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By: Hafiz Tijani/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Agogo: Aspirant arrested after firing gunshots at NPP polls appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The two Police Officers were shot dead on January 11, 2018, when they were returning from night patrol duties in the town.

“They were ambushed. They went on patrol and on their way back to Kumawu, part of the road had been blocked so when they stopped then they fired at them,” Ashanti Regional Police Commander, COP Ken Yeboah told Citi News in an interview.

Speaking on the Point Blank segment on Eyewitness News on Thursday, Director-General of Public Affairs at the Ghana Police Service, ACP David Eklu, said they are convinced that the six suspects they’ve arrested were those who killed the two officers at Drobonso.

[contextly_sidebar id=”OmBwVVTUhSM6CM6QRkTFZ5I6X7es564Q”]“Six people have been arrested, and we have strong evidence that they were the ones who were connected with the killing of two of our officers –an inspector and a constable, and as I speak, they are before the law court,” he added.

War on herdsmen in Agogo and Sekyere Afram Plains

Ghana’s security chiefs have waged war on herdsmen  at Agogo in the Asante Akim North District, and in the Sekyere Afram Plains District following complaints largely from Agogo, that their farms are being destroyed by cattle, and they are also being attacked by the herdsmen.

In view of this, a joint military and police task-force dubbed Operation Cowleg, was deployed to the two towns to flush out the herdsmen from those areas.

The task-force recently recorded some setbacks after four of their members were shot and injured by unknown assailants in Agogo.

In response, additional 200 personnel were dispatched to augment the work of Operation Cowleg.

ACP Eklu noted that, the work of the task-force is progressing steadily “and the feedback we are getting is that, most of the herdsmen have relocated to another area.”

“This is a task-force and a task-force has a specific assignment. When issues happen, you send officers there to stabilize the situation, and at least give some confidence to the public to allow other agencies to work towards a permanent solution, and that is what we are doing at Agogo. We hope that the task that the officers have been assigned to do will pave way for a more comprehensive solution to the problem in Agogo,” he added.

Background

There was some backlash in Agogo towards the end of 2017, when cattle owners accused the District Security Council (DISEC) in the area, of failing to give them prior notice before embarking on an operation to drive away their cattle from the town.

The owners claimed that the joint security task-force carrying out the operation has deliberately killed over a hundred cattle, and have sold out some to indigenes of the area.

Indigenes of Agogo and its environs for the past years have accused herdsmen of allowing their cattle to graze and destroy farmlands which are their only source of livelihood.

Some indigenes and herdsmen have died in a number of eruptions of violence related to the tensions.

As a result, a team comprising police and military officers were deployed to the town to evict the herdsmen.

We’ll respond to attacks by Agogo herdsmen

The Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant Gen. O. B Akwa, had earlier assured the people of Agogo that the task-force will push through their mandate until the issue is resolved.

According to him, they have the backing of the Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces to ensure that the objectives for the formation of the task-force are achieved.

“We shall be unrelenting in this assignment until we bring it to a closure,” he said.

Over 20,000 cattle ‘flushed out’ of Agogo

The Municipal Chief Executive of Asante Akyem North in the Ashanti Region, Francis Oti Boateng, has said almost half of the over 45,000 cattle that invaded Agogo and its surrounding areas have been taken out of the area.

He attributed the success to the diligence of government’s task-force known as Operation Cowleg.

Speaking to Citi News on the work of the task-force, Francis Oti Boateng said they have recorded some progress in the last few weeks.

“It’s a huge progress that we are making, but until we see no cattle on our land, I cannot say that we’ve won the fight. But I can tell that we estimated over 45,000 cattle on our land, and I can tell that at the moment almost half of them are gone, and we are making a lot of progress at the moment,” the DCE added.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post 6 arrested for allegedly killing 2 cops at Drobonso appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

He attributed the success to the diligence of government’s task-force known as Operation Cowleg.

A combined team of police and military personnel are currently in the Municipality to evict the herdsmen and their cattle.

[contextly_sidebar id=”HGqjPOEf7lpIVmhOY1Q8GkkjEzbomvEu”]Speaking to Citi News on the work of the task-force, Francis Oti Boateng said they have recorded some progress in the last few weeks.

“It’s a huge progress that we are making, but until we see no cattle on our land, I cannot say that we’ve won the fight. But I can tell that we estimated over 45,000 cattle on our land, and I can tell that at the moment almost half of them are gone, and we are making a lot of progress at the moment,” the DCE added.

Whiles majority of the cattle were taken out unharmed, there are reports that nearly 2000 of them were killed.

Background

Following complaints of alleged atrocities being committed by nomadic herdsmen and the destruction of farms in Agogo in the Ashanti Region and parts of the Eastern Region, government re-launched Operation Cow leg which comprised police and military personnel tasked to flush out the herders and their cattle from those areas.

In Agogo, four security personnel including three military officers and a police officer, who had been deployed to the area to evict the herdsmen, were shot and injured by an unknown assailant following the renewed government efforts to address the long-standing conflict.

There were reports of herdsmen fleeing the area amid complaints of the wanton killing of cattle by the task-force.

A cattle owner in Agogo, who spoke to Citi News, said he lost over 70 of his cattle to the task-force, and he had to beg the government to give him more time to move all his livestock from the area.

Recently, 200 additional personnel were deployed to Agogo and Sekyere Afram Plains districts after some military and police officers were shot at Agogo.

Operation Cow leg can’t solve herdsmen menace 

But an International Relations Analyst, Dr. Vladimir Antwi Danso, has insisted that Operation Cow leg is bound to fail again.

According to him, those are just knee-jerk approaches to the issue which needs proper solution such as ranching.

“It is one of the kinetic ways of solving a problem using full force. But this is not the first time we have operation cow leg and I believe that is not the way of resolving it. Maybe in the interim, the specific Agogo situation yes, but what about all over Ghana?”

“It’s about time we started ranching system. The breeding of cattle in Ghana must have some modernity to it,” he said.

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By: Farida Shaibu/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Over 20,000 cattle ‘flushed out’ of Agogo – MCE appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Abdulai Musah, Osmanu Issaka, Mohammed Issaka, Issah Jawo, Alhaji Ali Issah, Suleiman Adams and Aliu Amadu are facing provisional charges of conspiracy and murder.

[contextly_sidebar id=”jouLREyHgemRBfWNEaYNDyVnU9mU6bB3″]Their pleas were not taken and they were ordered to be held in police custody to make their next appearance on February 02.

Their three other accomplices, identified as Alhaji Buba, Gariba and Fuseini, are on the run.

The deceased officers – Inspector Adolf Mutse and Constable Prosper Ashinyo were shot and killed while returning from night patrol duty.

Another officer, Constable Enoch Okyere, suffered serious gunshot wounds in the attack and is on admission at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Asumadu Okyere-Darko told the court presided over by Mr Peter Oppong-Boahen that the accused persons met to plan the attack on January 09 in the house of Suleiman Adams at Techiman in the Brong Ahafo Region.

They had plotted to wage war on officers of the security services over the ongoing operation to forcibly remove nomadic herdsmen and their cattle from the Ashanti portion of the Afram Plains.

Mohammed Issaka reportedly offered to providing funding and promised each person cash of GH¢60,000.00 together with 30 cattle.

He was said to have made a down payment of GH¢1,000.00 to the five persons who carried out the January 11 attack that left the pair dead and their colleague hurt.

The plea for bail by lawyers for the accused persons was refused by the court.

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Source: GNA

The post Herdsmen menace: Court denies suspected cop killers bail appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Speaking at a press conference today [Friday], the President of the Suudu Baaba Fulani Association of Ghana, Osman Barry, complained of the “repeated atrocities perpetrated against Fulanis”.

[contextly_sidebar id=”DeV29pyC1689dT81eNyCLSPqchMm6We2″]He also called for compensation for Fulani victims of the operation, following what some have described as the harsh methods of the task-force, christened “Operation Cow Leg”.

The task-force is currently in Agogo, which has been a hotbed of tensions involving nomadic herdsmen, some of which are of Fulani extraction.

Osman Barry said a declaration of war on Fulanis is a violation of their fundamental human rights, hence their call.

“We wish to reiterate that Fulanis have been in the geographic entity for about 350 years. We therefore humbly appeal to his excellency, Nana Addo Danqua Akufo-Addo, to use his good office to bring the ongoing hostilities against the Fulanis, without any further delay.”

“We equally wish to appeal to his Excellency to ensure that adequate compensations are paid to the innocent victimized Fulani families who have lost their cattle during the said joint operations and other atrocities,” he said.

Fulani community laments abuse

Ahead of this press conference, Osman Barry had lamented that the Fulani Community in Ghana was being maltreated by the Ghanaian government and the larger populace following disagreements that have arisen between local farmers and nomadic herdsmen in parts of the country.

In Agogo, four security personnel including three military officers and a police officer, who had been deployed to the area to evict the herdsmen, were shot and injured by an unknown assailant following the renewed government efforts to address the long-standing conflict.

Following this, the government dispatched about 200 personnel drawn from the military and police services to the Asante Akyem North and Sekyere Afram Plains districts of the Ashanti Region to join the task-force.

There were reports of herdsmen fleeing the area amid complaints of the wanton killing of cattle by the task-force.

A cattle owner in Agogo, who spoke to Citi News said he lost over 70 of his cattle to the task-force, and he had to beg the government to give him more time to move all his livestock from the area.

Task-force ‘bound to fail’

An International relations analyst, Dr. Vladimir Antwi Danso, noted that Operation Cow leg was bound to fail because it was a mere knee-jerk approach to the problem.

Observers have consistently suggested a ranching policy to address problem once and for all but the government has constantly resorted to evicting the herdsmen from one location to the other.

Bill needed to regulate sector

The MP for Ledzokuku, Dr. Okoe Boye, called for a Bill that, when passed, will regulate the rearing of cattle in Ghana.

“We have to have a Bill which will regulate the sector and encourage more [people to get in]. When it is a regulated area, it will not be left for, [for want of a better term] only to Fulani. We will have a lot of farmers who can go into that sector,” he said.

In the meantime, the government has said a programme to restrict and ranch cattle will commence upon the completion of the operation in the Asante Akyem North and Sekyere Afram Plains districts, to provide a long-term solution to the decades-old tensions arising from the herding of cattle in these areas.

Suggestions are that, for most of the herdsmen, they have only been hired by people to take care of the cattle. However they are the ones often attacked when the cattle are reportedly destroying farms, whiles the real owners including politicians and other influential persons in society, are left off the hook.

In some of the clashes that have led to the loss of lives and properties, both the nomadic herdsmen and the locals have been affected., with the herdsmen alleging that in most cases, local farmers attack them without any provocation.

Farmers on the other hand accuse the herdsmen of starting most of the conflicts.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Stop atrocities against us – Fulanis beg Nana Addo appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Areas such as Nsuta, Esereso, Ntrodo, Nkodua-Aframso among others, are now the new destination for the herdsmen.

[contextly_sidebar id=”jo5rBxSU1roH6meBKmQNWT6h8qMSG6Mg”]Speaking to Citi News, Nsuta Police Commander, DSP Charles Atuah, said even though they have found the nomadic herdsmen at these areas, they will need intensive actions to be able to move them due to possible violent behaviours.

“Since last Friday, we have been embarking on series of operation to such areas to monitor, where they are located, even yesterday [Wednesday], we were on the ground at 12:00noon and truly we found most of them positioning at vantage points. Those that we have come in touch with, we want them to proceed, but yet we need a lot of intensive actions to be taken against them, because you know how these people are,” he said.

Charles Atuah said the district is constraint logistically and handling such a matter is beyond their control.

Meanwhile, residents of the Sekyere Central District are calling on the government to act to stop the migration.

The District Chief Executive for the area, Kwadwo Bediako Banahene, has declared war on the herdsmen saying the police and military will be used to evict them if they refuse to leave the town.

He said the district cannot contain them, and he will not allow what happened at Agogo to happen in his district.

“The only thing we can do is what happened at Agogo, so the military men and policemen, that were asked by the national security should come help us out, because our people here have been farmers for a very long time, and that is where they live and if we are not very careful, what happened at Agogo, may also happen here,” he said.

200 military, police deployed to Agogo

Government recently dispatched about 200 personnel drawn from the military and police service to Agogo to flush out nomadic herdsmen who are reportedly terrorizing residents of those areas.

A statement signed by a Deputy Minister of Information, Curtis Perry Kwabia Okudzeto, said the joint security team has been tasked to “push back the herdsmen from new areas they have occupied, arrest perpetrators of recent acts of violence for prosecution, and augment the efforts of Operation Cow Leg, an ongoing security operation aimed at dealing with the activities of herdsmen in the area.”

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By: Farida Yusif/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Sekyere district in fear as herdsmen ‘takeover’ the area appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to him, those are just knee-jerk approaches to the issue which needs proper solution.

“It is one of the kinetic ways of solving a problem using full force. But this is not the first time we have operation cow leg and I believe that is not the way of resolving it. Maybe in the interim, the specific Agogo situation yes, but what about all over Ghana?”

[contextly_sidebar id=”3sxjB9LVt3kC7UXGwz1Ztbin9cio51By”]Speaking on the Point Blank Segment on Eyewitness News, Dr. Antwi Danso explained that most of the herdsmen who are bearing the brunt of Operation Cow leg are usually not the rightful owners of the cattle hence such strategy must be re-looked.

“It is not the herdsmen who own the cattle. Medical officers, military officers, chiefs, politicians among others own the cattle so why are we blaming the herdsmen? The very people who own the cattle what have we done to them? I’m not saying what they are doing is good. If they rape women and kill people, that is criminal and we have to deal with them.”

Background

Following complaints of alleged atrocities being committed by nomadic herdsmen and the destruction of farms in Agogo in the Ashanti Region and parts of the Eastern Region, government re-launched Operation Cow leg which comprised police and military personnel tasked to flush out such people from those areas.

Recently, 200 additional personnel were deployed to Agogo and Sekyere Afram Plains districts after some military and police officers were shot at Agogo.

A statement signed by a Deputy Minister of Information, Curtis Perry Kwabia Okudzeto, said the joint security team has been tasked to “push back the herdsmen from new areas they have occupied, arrest perpetrators of recent acts of violence for prosecution, and augment the efforts of Operation Cow leg, an ongoing security operation aimed at dealing with the activities of herdsmen in the area.”

Ranching is the solution

But speaking on Point Blank on Tuesday, Dr. Danso said the only solution to the issue is to resort to what he referred to as ranching.

“It’s about time we started ranching system. The breeding of cattle in Ghana must have some modernity to it,” he said.

Antwi Danso explained that with ranching, cattle can be taken care of professionally without causing havoc to any farm or property, adding that “if we don’t do this the Fulani menace will continue forever and forever.”

–

By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post Operation Cow leg can’t solve herdsmen menace – Antwi Danso appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to him, they have the backing of the Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces to ensure that the objectives for the formation of the task-force are achieved.

He warned that an attack on the security is an attack on the state, and stressed that the Security will respond to any attack in equal measure.

“We shall be unrelenting in this assignment until we bring it to a closure,” he said.

Lieutenant General O. B Akwa gave the assurance on Tuesday as he addressed members of the Agogo Traditional Council when he led a high powered delegation on a fact-finding mission to the area.

“You all recall that not too long ago there was a major incident here where some soldiers and policemen were attacked in the course of their duty. And we want to make this point very clear that no attack on a soldier, policeman or any other security person or an ordinary citizen of Ghana shall go without a response. And this response will be proportionate, it will be graduated, depending on the level of attack, we will up our game. It will address the core problems of the traditional area.”

“In response to that, we decided under the authority of the Commander In Chief, to send in reinforcement, to send a clear message to those who are involved in this dastardly act that they cannot continue to act with impunity in the state of Ghana,” he added.

Agogo Queen mother speaks

Queen mother of the Agogo Traditional area, Nana Afrankoma Kusi Boateng, also asked the Inspector General of Police to investigate the former Police Commander for Agogo, ASP Samuel Azugu.

She alleged that ASP Azugu in the course of his work shirked his responsibilities as a police officer, and must be investigated and punished to serve as a deterrent to others.

She also advised the new Police Commander to reject any form of inducement from cattle owners and herdsmen and execute his duties in a professional manner.

Background

The warning comes in the wake of last week’s attack on some four members of the task-force, three military officers and a police officer, who sustained gunshot wounds.

According to Police in the area, the assailant lay in wait and shot at the security personnel, who were in the bush as part of measures to evict the nomadic herdsmen and their cattle.

“Please advise the new district police commander here. Tell him to resist any bribery temptations. A former commander who was assigned here was not helpful. I will plead with government to investigate him and if possible sack him from the police service if possible,” she said.

On the nomadic herdsmen issue, she pledged the support of the Council to activities of the task-force.

200 military, police deployed to Agogo

Government subsequently dispatched about 200 personnel drawn from the military and police service to Agogo and Sekyere Afram Plains districts to flush out the nomadic herdsmen who are reportedly terrorizing residents of those areas.

A statement signed by a Deputy Minister of Information, Curtis Perry Kwabia Okudzeto, said the joint security team has been tasked to “push back the herdsmen from new areas they have occupied, arrest perpetrators of recent acts of violence for prosecution, and augment the efforts of Operation Cowleg, an ongoing security operation aimed at dealing with the activities of herdsmen in the area.”

–

By: Godwin A. Allotey & Hafiz Tijani/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post We’ll respond to attacks by Agogo herdsmen – Chief of Defence Staff appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

This particular cattle owner said he has lost over 70 of his cattle after they were reportedly killed by members of the task force set up to flush out nomadic herdsmen in the Akyem North District.

[contextly_sidebar id=”M9Nl9rc5Pt9JdTCwGLdIpW8u6EGqsK4q”]”…they came [on Friday]. They killed about 79 of my animals. Now the remaining ones with the babies are the ones we are appealing to them for. They should just give us two days or three days to move them from Agogo land. This all we are begging the MP to do; to do look into it and let us move our cattle.”

The government dispatched about 200 personnel drawn from the military and police services to the Asante Akyem North and Sekyere Afram Plains districts of the Ashanti Region to join the task force after three military officers and a police officer on the task force were shot by an unknown assailant at Agogo.

A statement signed by a Deputy Minister of Information, Perry Okudzeto said the joint security team has been tasked to “push back the herdsmen from new areas they have occupied, arrest perpetrators of recent acts of violence for prosecution and augment the efforts of Operation Cowleg, an ongoing security operation aimed at dealing with the activities of herdsmen in the area.”

MP remaining resolute

The Member of Parliament for Asante Akyem North, Andy Appiah Kubi urged the team of Military and Police personnel deployed to Agogo not to be intimidated by the recent attack on some of their colleagues.

“Any attempt to intimidate the security forces of our countries is a call for war. Indeed they have made a declaration for war if they seek to undermine the security of the State… We will not run. We have men to defend the country.”

“You have sworn to defend the country. I believe you can do it. Do not allow anything to frustrate your attempts to defend yourselves and the country,” Mr. Appiah Kubi said to the security personnel.

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By: Hafiz Tijani/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Agogo: Cattle owner begs MP after over 70 cows killed appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Such a Bill could also potentially encourage more Ghanaians to get into cattle rearing, the MP said on The Big Issue.

[contextly_sidebar id=”oQy6h7ELVtbDaNp8u1QFf6vJs3WEeD5O”]His comments followed escalated tensions in the Asante Akyem North District after four security personnel, including three military officers and a police officer, who had been deployed to the area to evict nomadic herdsmen and their cattle, were shot by an unknown assailant at Agogo.

The government has since dispatched about 200 personnel drawn from the military and police services to the Asante Akyem North and Sekyere Afram Plains districts of the Ashanti Region to flush out nomadic herdsmen who are reportedly terrorizing residents of those areas.

But Dr. Okoe Boye warned that “if you displace them [the herdsmen and cattle], they will find themselves somewhere else.”

“We have to have a Bill which will regulate the sector and encourage more [people to get in]. When it is a regulated area, it will not be left for, [for want of a better term] only to Fulani. We will have a lot of farmers who can go into that sector.”

“It is a very lucrative sector and close to 80 percent of the cattle do not belong to the guys. So now you have Ghanaians who are giving their cattle to the so-called Fulani people to manage for them because they know it is a sector that can generate money,” he said.

On the Agogo matter, Dr. Okoe Boye said, “once a court has ruled, we have to take steps to enforce but beyond that, the Bill is critical.”

In the meantime, the government has said a programme to restrict and ranch cattle will commence upon the completion of the operation in the Asante Akyem North and Sekyere Afram Plains districts, to provide a long-term solution to the decades-old tensions arising from the herding of cattle in these areas.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Bill needed to sanitise cattle rearing – MP appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.