A Private Legal Practitioner, Kwame Jantuah, has urged President Akufo-Addo to summon feuding factions in the Bawku disturbances to the Presidency in Accra.
Speaking on the Morning Starr Friday, Legal Practitioner, also expressed fear those who want to cause any kind of mayhem (terrorism) may use the situation to plant their seeds in the area.
According to him, the Bawku situation has to do with colonialism, politics, chieftaincy but there is the need to get to the root cause adding that “we need to be able to find lasting solutions to the challenges of Bawku.”
“The question of porous borders. The challenging thing about conflict in border towns gives the chance for such things to happen, given that Boko Haram is active. The era of Rawlings curfew shaped people’s lifestyles. It really dampened a lot of things and we’re getting into a festive season. People in Bawku will want to be able to work and earn a living.
“There is some degree of responsibility on the Head of State to make sure although his people are in place, he is monitoring. I’m sure by now his people are briefing him. Sometimes with situations like Bawku? The President needs to talk to them. Sometimes the silent-ness of things like these don’t help,” he stated.
A Security Analyst, Adam Bonaa has also called on the government to station a K9 Security Unit at the Bawku Municipality in the Upper East Region to check the proliferation of arms in the area.
Speaking to Francis Abban on Morning Starr Thursday, the Security Expert indicated that besides stationing K9 in the area, the Security Agencies must give some training and titbits on intelligence gathering to the market women, farmers, traders to help with information on suspicious characters.
According to him, most of the weapons are not manufactured in Bawku rather they are brought in from neighbouring areas.
Mr. Bonaa also advised that there must be an Informal Reward System where people would be paid on the report on persons illegally in possession of firearms to check the situation.
“One of the surest ways of detecting weapons is the use of the K9, when you go to most of these International Airports, you have the K9 Unit either dictating weapons or drugs. Let’s begin to have specific purposes for our K9 Unit that was taken off but now the new IGP has brought it.
“So let’s have a permanent K9 Unit in the Bawku Municipality that would be able to pick up illicit arms in the hands of people. They (people) themselves would fear to move around and use them (arms). If I know that I can carry a firearm in the car or in my smock and it cannot be seen, the chances are that I can hold a firearm and go about committing a crime and you will not find me,” he advised.
Mr. Bonaa also called for a holistic approach to the Bawku instability that has lasted for 40-50-years now in the area.
