The Paramount Queen of Alavanyo Traditional area in the Volta region, Mama Ametor II, has alleged that some police officers in the region are involved in the cultivation of marijuana, locally known as “wee”.
She also dismissed claims that the on-going impasse in Alavanyo is as a result of renewed clashes between Alavanyo and Nkunya as reported by the Regional Police Commander, DCOP Francis Doku.
Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem Show on Friday, Mama Ametor II, claimed that what happened was as a result of “business deal gone wrong”.
In a statement signed by her on behalf of the Alavanyo Youth Association, she explained that the tension in Alavanyo had calmed due to the relentless efforts of the leaders of the town who have continuously engaged the youth.
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It further stated the recent confusion was a result of an illegal business being transacted in the area by some security officials who felt cheated along the way hence venting of their anger on the innocent youth.
Below is the full statement
ALAVANYO YOUTH ASSOCIATIONÂ SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT IN THE PURPORTED ALAVANYO YOUTH “CLASH” WITH JOINT POLICE – MILITARY FORCE.
Welcome to you all Ladies and Gentlemen of the media, as citizens of this country and indigenes of Alavanyo, it is in our interest to set the records straight in the latest confusion in Alavanyo.
First of all, we would want to note that the impasse is not as a result of a renewed clash between Alavanyo and Nkunya.
It is a clear case of a business deal gone bad between some business parties within the area which equally involves some security officials.
Evidence available to us points to the fact that the clash has no relationship whatsoever to any arms as reported by the Volta Regional Police Commander, DCOP Francis Doku.
The tension of Alavanyo – Nkonya has died down due to our relentless efforts in speaking to the youth and our neighbours at Nkonya for some time now and we have been living peacefully as neighbours.
We would want to state that the recent confusion which has led to three people losing their lives is as a result of some illegal business being transacted in the area by some security officials who felt cheated along the way hence the venting of Wednesday, January 16, 2019, their anger on innocent youth in the town.
It’s very painful and heart-piercing that whilst we are enjoying our little peace which we have been working hard for, a greedy and a corrupted Police Commander with his irresistible appetite to make money will sacrifice our peace for money and draw us backward.
It’s always said that, if you want to hang a dog, give it a bad name and then hang it. The world has taken our peaceful nature and our relentlessness to speak to the media in numerous incidence to be our weakness and hence has been throwing every dark shade at us.
All the bad names DCOP Francis Doku and his accomplice who is a Police officer at Ashaima are trying to give this dog today won’t stick. The dog has refused to be hanged this time round.
We have both audio and visual evidence at our disposal to prove the point being made. Personalities within the security service have been mentioned and there is the need to ensure these people are brought to book.
We do not have faith in the police and will not accept anything brought out by this same people who have killed and injured brothers as reported
We demand a thorough investigation by AN INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION BODY.
Ladies and gentlemen of the media, the normal practice that is done when the Police wants to do a search in the area is for them to first go to the Divisional Wednesday, January 16, 2019 Police Command which is Kpando and the officers of the command will lead them into the area. But when DCOP Francis Doku was coming none of this happened and when they needed reinforcement, instead of calling on the Peace Keepers stationed at Kpeme who are about 3km away, DCOP Francis Doku in his wisdom drove to Kpando (20km away from Alavanyo) did not call for reinforcement from Kpando or reported anything to them but proceeded to Nkonya (30km away) in all 50km away from Alavanyo to drive reinforcement to the town to kill our brothers. Who in his right senses with genuine intentions will do this calculation?
If the Presidency, the Interior Ministry and the REGSEC will listen to the side of conflicting reports given by one man – DCOP Francis Doku, then the innocent youthful souls that were lost and injured wouldn’t be served justice and we will be very much disappointed in the Power that is vested in the President and the National Security to protect and defend the rights of the citizens in the country.
Audio conversations which prove the points being raised shall be made available to the national security and the police hierarchy for officers involed including the Volta Regional Commander, DCOP Francis Doku who has been contradicting himself in the media since this issue happened to be brought to book.
WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED?
A Police officer in Ashaima in the Greater Accra Region gave his brother one Stephen Awaner an amount of Ghc20,000 to farm wee for him at Alavanyo – Dzogbedze. The brother who already owed some of the youth in the business had to pay his balance to them but was hesitant. So the boys harvested 15 sticks of marijuana [Amnesia Haze breed] to compensate for their balance.
Wednesday, January 16, 2019
After the actual harvest was made and Police’s part was sent to him, he wasn’t happy that he made loses on his investment so had to call in the Regional Police Commander DCOP Francis Doku to arrest the boys who harvested the 15 sticks to compensate for their money owed them by the Police’s brother.
This was the arrest DCOP Francis Doku gave the fraudulent headline; “STOCKPILE OF AMMUNITION INTERCEPTED IN ALAVANYO – DZOGBEDZE IN RELATION TO OTI REFERENDUM.” He later extorted Ghc20,000 from the boys and left them.
WE DID NOT TALK
Due to the Ashiaman Police officer and DCOP Francis Doku’s greed, they came back to Alavanyo Dzogbedze on Sunday 13th January to destroy other people’s farm just because they made losses in their investment. They had burnt the farms including a maize farm. There is pictorial evidence and even if you want, we can lead you to the farm.
When going to the bush, they had camouflaged the Ashiaman Police’s brother in an Army uniform. This angered the youth in the farm and a scuffle ensued resulting in the arrest of two of the boys.
Whilst this was happening, another group of guys who did not comprehend what the Police vehicle with number GP 4487 was doing at the outskirts of the town as assailants who always carry out shooting in the area mostly disguise themselves in army and Police apparel, approached the driver to interrogate him. The driver couldn’t give any clear explanation or shown his identity card.
His helmet and two handcuffs were seized from him and brought to the Chief’s Palace for interrogation.
Whilst DCOP Francis Doku and his team were coming out from the bush, the two boys in handcuffs escaped from them.
Reaching the chiefs palace, they framed a case of coming to arrest people having ammunition and that the boys they arrested have made away with their handcuffs and an AK-47.
The Chief of Dzogbedze, Togbe Petekuatsi V, who expressed displeasure at the Police’s entry into his community to effect arrests without his knowledge, knowing the volatile nature of the area, promised to help the police find their belongings.
Later in the evening, a reinnforced Joint Police-Military force under the leadership of ASP Asifri who is in charge of the Alavanyo Nkunya Peace Keeping unit stationed in Nkunya, returned to Alavanyo Dzogbedze to meet with the chief, but rejected seats offered to him and his men and complained about the conduct of the towns folk who were hooting at them.
The officers while starting their vehicles shot into the crowd indiscriminately and killed Atta Kofi who was recovering from some malaria and had only walked to the roadside to buy Banku, and Confidence who is a native of Anfoega Wodemaxe on the street of Dzogbedze and injured six more.
Contrary to conflicting reports by DCOP Francis Doku in one breath that the youth had surrounded their car and started to shooting at them and in another that the youth had cut power supply to the town and ran to the mountains which are about 4km away and started to shoot into their own township aimed at them the military is unimaginable.
Whilst we wait on the President of the Republic, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, The National Security, The Interior Ministry and The REGSEC to establish and conduct an INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION into the killings and shooting of innocent peace loving citizens of Alavanyo, we will want the Regional Police Commander, DCOP FRANCIS DOKU to be asked these questions;
Alavanyo Killings: #AskDCOP_DOKU
- How could the youth switch off power supply to the whole town? And if DCOP DOKU has any evidence on this because ECG can ascertain if power was really cut and where it was cut from?
- Are the people stupid to ran to the mountains and be shooting back into their own township in the darkness with the aim of shooting at the military?
- If the military were shooting back towards the mountains, how come people died on the street?
- One of the deceased was having Banku in his hand. Has Banku become an ammunition?
- There were peace keepers at Kpeme why didn’t they bring them to the area when their items were “seized” but had to go all the way to Nkonya to bring reinforcement to Alavanyo Dzogbedze whilst those at Kpeme were just few minutes away.
- Does he agree that those stationed at Kpeme shot and killed a 70yr old man and set their FPU tank ablaze to incriminate the youth in the issue?
- Why did they set the wee and maize farm ablaze in the evening of Sunday and what was DOKU doing in there with his boys? We have audio visual evidence of them burning the farms.
- What is his evidence that the youth shot at the police cum military that warranted a fire back killing two on the spot.
Is that what they are taught at the training school even if it happened?
- After hearing the side of his men, did he also cross check from the village to ascertain the facts before speaking a one sided story to the media?
- When speaking to Joy FM on Monday, 14th January in the morning @10am, he said the bodies were deposited at the morgue. That was blatantly false. The media were at Alavanyo – Dzogbedze throughout the day, the bodies were moved at 3-4pm Monday, 14 January, 2019. Is he a man to be trusted?
- Knowing too well that Alavanyo and Nkonya are not in very good terms, what was the motivation of the 6 officers to call for reinforcement from an enemy camp Wednesday, January 16, 2019 in Nkonya while there were capable military officers stationed at Alavanyo Kpeme?
- How can two boys in handcuffs escape from six security officers with a riffle in a moving vehicle (as reported by DCOP DOKU to Joyfm) without being caught by our trained military and police officers?
- Is he having knowledge about any Police officer who has given money to his brother to cultivate wee for him at Alavanyo Dzogbedze?
- Was he at the farm with those officers who came from Ashiaman and Ho to destroyed some wee farms including a maize farm?
If NO,
Would he resign from the service if we produce the boys who were at the bush when they came and are aware of an officer giving out monies for the wee farming, and he DCOP Francis Doku was part of those officers who came and destroyed the farms and he was the one who ordered those killers to shoot and kill the innocent people because they were not able to recover their investment from the wee farm?
- Why did DCOP DOKU got infuriated and brought his Press Conference held on Tuesday, 15th January to an abrupt end when the press who were at the grounds at Alavanyo – Dzogbedze were asking him these questions?
Ladies and gentlemen of the Press, as you can see, this is not an issue that can be swept under any carpet, we are ready to go any length to seek justice for our brothers and we kindly ask you to report this truth to the world for the killers of our brothers to be brought to book.
Thank you for coming.
God bless Alavanyo,
Long live Ghana.
Mama Ametor II
+233 203922374
Paramount Queen of Alavanyo Traditional Area in the Volta Region of Ghana
DISTRIBUTION:
HIS EXCELLENCY,
THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF GHANA,
JUBILEE HOUSE, ACCRA
HIS ROYAL MAJESTY, ASANTEHENE
OTUMFOUR OSEI TUTU II
MANHYIA PALACE
KUMASI – ASHANTI REGION
CC:
THE RT. HON. SPEAKER,
OFFICE OF PARLIAMENT
PARLIAMENT HOUSE
ACCRA
HER LADYSHIP
THE CHIEF JUSTICE
JUDICIAL SERVICE OF GHANA,
ACCRA
THE HON. MINISTER
MINISTRY OF INTERIOR
ACCRA
THE CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF,
GHANA ARMED FORCES, BURMA CAMP
ACCRA
THE PRESIDENT,
NATIONAL PEACE COUNCIL OF GHANA, ACCRA.
PRESIDENT
NATIONAL HOUSE OF CHIEFS,
ACCRA.
THE PRESIDENT,
GHANA BAR ASSOCIATION,
ACCRA
Wednesday, January 16, 2019
THE COUNTRY DIRECTOR
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL,
ACCRA.
THE PRESIDENT
VOLTA REGIONAL PEACE COUNCIL
HO – VOLTA
THE CHAIRMAN
VOLTA REGIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL (REGSEC)
HON. MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT,
HOHOE CONSTITUENCY,
PARLIAMENT HOUSE,
ACCRA
THE MUNICIPAL CHIEF EXECUTIVE
HOHOE MUNICIPAL,
HOHOE.
THE MEDIA