50 ex-N’Delta militants go wild in Ghana

It took the intervention of the Nigerian High Commission to stop the agitators from being arrested by the police. However, some aggrieved members of the community are demanding their eviction the area. Weekly Trust reports that the youths were in Accra, Ghana under the Federal Government Amnesty programme for ex-Niger Delta militants. The brawl broke […]

It took the intervention of the Nigerian High Commission to stop the agitators from being arrested by the police. However, some aggrieved members of the community are demanding their eviction the area.

Weekly Trust reports that the youths were in Accra, Ghana under the Federal Government Amnesty programme for ex-Niger Delta militants.

The brawl broke out on Thursday morning at the Korrdam hotel, Achimota, an Accra suburb, where they are lodging. The boys were reported to have punctured the tyres of the bus that was to convey them to school that morning. Another group that was in favour of going to school called in some vulcanizers to fix the tyres.

According to an eye-witness, the move did not go down well with the belligerent group; so they beat up and injured the vulcanizers and broke their tools. The injured men were reported to have gone to their communities for reinforcement, came back and attacked the hotel.

Consequently, the community members besieged the hotel, threatening to deal with the restive youths. Both sides were reported to have thrown stones at themselves.

The witness told Weekly Trust that the situation could have degenerated into a big fracas between nationals of the two countries, were it not for the timely intervention of top police officers from the Tesano Police Command, led by Assistant Police Commissioner Bosu and the in-coming Nigerian High Commissioner, Chief Seyi Onafowokan.

Following deft moves by senior Nigerian officials and Ghana police, the irate crowd was assuaged and the Nigerian youths were also calmed down.

The Manager of Korrdam Hotel, Mr. Peter Wireko told Weekly Trust yesterday that “their allowances delayed a little bit and we were told by the co-ordinator that it was no fault of his. He had applied but there was a little bit of delay, but they seem not to understand. However, eventually they were paid and what was outstanding, he promised that they would be paid next week. With that explanation the boys were calmed,” he affirmed.

Wireko denied media reports which alleged that the boys mounted road blocks and that warning shots were fired by the security officers.

“There was no warning shots, there was no road blocks. All that happened was that the community in support of those two that had been beaten came and supported them and amassed at the front of the hotel. But when the High Commissioner arrived and the top police officers also arrived, we were able to solve the problem and they all went away,” he explained.

But the manager acknowledged that some of the boys have been unruly at times, just as he admitted that some of them do smoke Indian hemp.

“Yeah you are right. This time I will not deny the fact. We have had occasion to make complaints to the police. But I wanted the students to be addressed on the issue, that when they are caught smoking Indian hemp they will be jailed in Ghana for not less than 10 years. We wanted to tell them, but I wanted an official to really address them. So that whenever they are arrested they do not worry me,” he declared.

Wireko also disclosed that since the boys came to the hotel in February on three occasions he had to call in the police to deal with acts of misbehavior on the part of the boys.

He blamed the problem on a few bad eggs that usually instigate and ferment trouble among the ex-agitators.

Meanwhile the cost of the damage done to the hotel has  been estimated at about USD3,000.