A ceremony has been held in Tamale to mark the 16th anniversary of the passing of Ya-Naa Yakubu Andani II, the Overlord of Dagbon who was killed in 2002.

The occasion was used to call on government to live up to its responsibility and ensure that those responsible for the murder of the late overlord of the Dagbon were brought to justice.

A Yendi Circuit Court has convicted 18 motorbike riders for various traffic offences in the Yendi Municipality of Northern Region. They include, Ibrahim Abdulai, Kwaku Jerry, Fuseini Alhassan, Yussif Iddrisu, Denis Nyaba, Salifu Adam Zibri,, Lukeman Mumuni, including others. Prosecuting. Inspector Grace Nutsugah told the court that on 15th March, 2018 at about 08:30am, the Yendi Divisional Police Command embarked on a special motor-bike exercise to clamp down indiscipline in the Yendi Municipality.

Inspector Grace Nutsugah said in course of the exercise 18 motor-bike riders were arrested some of their offences included riding bikes without crash helmet, unregistered motorbikes, some without riding licence, others without genuine documents, lack of road worthy certificates among others. She said the suspects were processed and arranged before the Yendi Circuit Court presided over by Mr William Twumasi Appiah.

An airstrip is to be constructed in Yendi, Deputy Aviation Minister Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, has announced.

He added that a four-acre stretch of land for the project had already been secured.

He indicated that it would come in handy during emergency situations.

The Deputy Minister at the weekend led officials of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority and the Ghana Airport Company to the palace of the Kampakuya-Na Andani Yakubu Abdulai, Regent of Dagbon, and acting President of the Dagbon Traditional Council, to thank him for the release of the land.

The government’s inability to prosecute the people who murdered Dagbon Overlord, Ya-Na Yakubu Andani II, has been blamed for the “culture of impunity and recklessness” in the Northern Region.

The Andani royal family said the unresolved 2002 murder in Dagbon has fuelled a culture where the youth see nothing wrong with violence and impunity.

At a news conference in Yendi, the family has asked the current government to take up the matter and ensure the prosecution of the perpetrators.

The Andani family at the press conference

The NDC Member of Parliament for Kumbungu in the Northern region, Ras Mubarak has disclosed there was a conspiracy by government officials to destroy properties in his enclave in the case involving the burning of 14 tipper trucks and an excavator by the military.

It has emerged that the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly(TMA) in the Northern region had its excavator sitting on the site where the 14 other tipper trucks were torched by the military, however three days before the incident, local authorities managed to move the equipment from the enclave, the Kumbungu lawmaker told Kasapa 102.5 FM.

He questioned: “did the Regional Minister have wind of it [operations]? So even if the site where the sand winning activities were going on was questionable, why would the assembly have its excavator working at the same place?

His comments come against the backdrop of the minority caucus calls for the affected truck owners to seek legal remedy for them to be compensated in the destruction of their properties.

The minority led by Haruna Iddrisu in a meeting with the Tamale Tipper Truck Owners Union in Tamale last week said: “The wicked burning of those 14 tipper trucks is excessive and extrajudicial and therefore legally unjustifiable and untenable and we will pursue this matter to its utmost and logical conclusion. Nothing will stop us from asking for adequate compensation for the affected persons as due process was not respected and upheld.

“Rights have been disrespected and rights have been breached. The right to own property and the right to own a tipper truck for the purpose of livelihood has been undermined.”

Background

Armed infantries of the Sixth Battalion deployed from their military base in Kamina Barracks in Tamale, Saturday, March 3, carried out a combative operation to intensify a crackdown on illegal sand winning activities in the area.

According to reports, dozens of heavy sand mining machines including about fourteen (14) tipper trucks and an excavator were burnt by the soldiers who stormed the area by trucks.

The illegal miners fled the area before the armed forces arrived, thus no arrest was made.

Some residents and miners who saw the soldiers advancing towards the mining site said they counted about three military trucks loaded with heavily armed soldiers.

One of the trucks was carrying a canoe, a panicked resident of Dalun, a village along the path to the river told Kasapa News.

The unregulated operation by the miners have polluted the water source, caused deep environmental damages, pushed farmers away from farmlands and forced fishmongers to hang their nets.

Despite several efforts by the Regional Security Council, the activity persisted until management of the Ghana Water Company engaged national security personnel to combat the activity.

About three private surveyors were severely beaten after a survey on a disputed land triggered communal violence at Fuo-shegu near Tamale in the Northern Region Tuesday evening.

Two royal family fighting over the extension of demarcated lands for sale in the community clashed when the surveyors were brought to cart out exercise by the chief, who is able to be manipulated by his children due to old age. The other family attempted to stop the current chief’s family from further sale of the lands.