[contextly_sidebar id=”ZVEmckEuzrOQ7Vw0Tlidnq2RF59CgrqN”]The directive came after the Minority Chief Whip and MP for Asawase, Muntaka Mubarak, requested that Mr. Agyemang-Manu be summoned to speak to the ‘mysterious deaths’.

Before the summons, the Minister, speaking in Parliament today [Tuesday], said he is now gathering details on the incident.

“Some of these investigations are scientific. They take some time… until I consult with my technical people, it will be naive on my part to sit here and give time deadlines. Mr. Speaker, I can get you informed after I meet with technical people on how quickly we can come to the House to brief the House,” Mr. Agyeman-Manu stated.

The Kumasi Academy, which is within the Asawase Constituency, has so far recorded eight deaths since the beginning of 2017 from ailments suspected to be meningitis-related.

Four students died earlier in 2017, whilst three died just last week. Another died on Tuesday morning, prompting parents to raise concerns about the safety of their wards in the school.

Some of the parents stormed the school on Tuesday and took their wards home despite the fact that they are about to start examinations.

One parent said he would rather have his ward fail the exams than stay in the school and die. Police personnel were dispatched to the school according to Citi News’ Hafiz Tijani, to maintain law and order.

Before the 2017/2018 academic year, the school’s authorities had said it had adopted measures to prevent meningitis-related deaths.

Asawase worried

Mr. Mubarak stressed that, people in his constituency are extremely worried about the lack of clarity on the issues.

He said he wanted the Health Minister to come and give “the official position on what was happening, what measures they are taking to nip this in the bud, and what measures are being put in place to prevent this from reoccurring.”

“Mr. Speaker, my fear is that, if we are not careful, that school will be empty with all the infrastructure that it has because you will hear people in Kumasi saying it is occultism, it is spiritual, it is some demons that are in the school. All manner of things are being said,” the legislator added.

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By: Duke Mensah Opoku & Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Awudu Osman, also known as Awudu Ninja, was shot and killed by police with his alleged accomplice Lukeman Mohammed, also known as Alfa.

A final funeral rites had been held for both suspects according to Islamic tradition.

Relatives of Osman have intensified their call for justice for the deceased, after they had given Government and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) a three-day ultimatum to investigate the death.

The situation prompted the Asawase Member of Parliament, Muntaka Mubarak, to raise the matter on the floor of Parliament, where he requested that the Interior Minister be made to appear before MPs to speak to the matter.

Mr. Muntaka, who was at the funeral on Sunday, reiterated his  resolve to get to the bottom of the matter.

“For us, we will continue to pursue till we get justice for him. I mean, the Minister for Interior has Tuesday or Wednesday to come and brief the house, and obviously I think we will push for an independent investigation so that we don’t leave it to the police, but we will get an independent body to investigate this so we can ascertain the truth.”

The Asawase MP, who later visited the pregnant widow of one of the deceased persons, said she was still traumatized over the incident, and feared her children and other relatives could be stigmatized in the future.

He cautioned the youth to be patience and not to take the laws into their hands. He also urged relatives of the deceased to cooperate with the process in their quest to seek justice for the deceased persons.

The family is yet to get a copy of an autopsy report which was handed to police by doctors on Thursday.

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By: Hafiz Tijani/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Muntaka demands independent probe into ‘killing’ of suspected robbers appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The angry residents on Saturday morning took to the streets to pour out their displeasure about the decision.

The residents burnt lorry tires amidst chanting in protest of the decision to use the land for an interim bus terminal.

According to the aggrieved residents, the siting of the terminal in the midst of a cluster of schools will affect academic activities and endanger the lives of both teachers and students.

One of the residents who spoke to Citi News said “We are demonstrating for the interest of the community and not individual interests. This is a community school that we have with other clusters of schools surrounding this area and you want to turn this place into a bus terminal. Imagine you have a child here and they want to turn the place into a bus terminal so that the drivers will be shouting Boli, Tamale, and Walewale, how can these children have the concentration to learn?”

Another demonstrator said “I met with the Ashanti Regional Peace Council here and told them everything concerning the park and they understood me. We are waiting to see what will happen here.”

The proposed interim terminal, according to the Asokore Mampong Municipal Assembly (AMMA), is to aid the relocation of drivers from the Tamale station at Alabar.

An opinion leader in the area, Alhaji Baba Alhassan, says other alternatives must be considered since the residents are adamant in their opposition to the terminal.

“You see, those mates, they are hypocrites. They have been fighting among themselves and killing each other. So why do they want to bring them here? They cannot bring them here. If they bring them here, it is going to be a very big problem for us. So we will not understand and we will never understand why they want to bring them here”.

All demarcation sketches posted at the site, have been destroyed by the residents.

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By: Hafiz Tijani/Citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Asawase residents protest siting of bus terminal on school land appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Residents who accused him of being a thief say they suspect he was part of a gang who has been attacking and snatching the belongings of people in the area.

According to an eyewitness who was part of onlookers at the scene, the body had been lying since morning when they woke up to start their day.

He suspects the young man might have been beaten during the night while their lights were off.

It is not the first time such an incident has happened in the area. A suspected thief was equally lynched close to the Dogo Moro park at Asawase.

Kumasi is one of the areas in Ghana where the practice of what has become known as mob justice is very common.

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By: Hafiz Tijani/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The NBA awarded Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant with this season’s Most Valuable Player award.

In a lengthy, tearful and poignant ceremony, Durant thanked his family members, every single teammate from Russell Westbrook to little-known Grant Jerrett, the entire Thunder coaching staff and organization, Oklahoma City and The Oklahoman newspaper for calling him “Mr. Unreliable.”

It was a heartfelt moment for Durant, none more so than when he referenced Pratt, his mother.

“We weren’t supposed to be here,” Durant said. “You made us believe. You kept us off the street. You put clothes on our backs. You put food on the table. When you didn’t eat, you made sure we ate and [you] went to sleep hungry.

“You sacrificed for us. You’re the real MVP.”

Pratt said the magnitude of her son being named MVP had not really hit her prior to the ceremony.

But after her son thanked her, members of Durant’s family, the Thunder, season-ticket holders and VIPs in attendance gave both Durant and his mother a standing ovation.

Hundreds of fans watching outside cheered, too.

Watch Kevin Durant thanking his mother:

By: Gary Al-Smith/Citifmonline.com/Ghana

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