Bawku/Military Incident: 5 Dead, Mahama Ayariga Demands Names of Soldiers Involved

Mahama Ayariga, Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, has called on the top brass of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) to produce the names of soldiers allegedly responsible for the death of three persons who were said to be in the custody of the military in Sabongari in the Upper East Region.

In an interview on TV3's Keypoint, the Bawku Central MP asserted that the victims were murdered without justification after the military apprehended them and disputed the GAF's claims that their soldiers only returned fire in defence.

“They were murdered because the military actually apprehended them and they had no reason to shoot and kill these three young men and so I find that totally unacceptable and we will continue to demand accountability on the part of the security agencies,” the MP insisted.He therefore wants the military hierarchy to submit the soldiers allegedly responsible for the death of three men.''The attitude of the military is something that I have been condemning and I am asking their commanders to bring in their men because the Ghana Armed Forces have a very enviable reputation as one of the very professional institutions that have gained some international respect for their excellence in peacekeeping missions," Hon Ayariga added.

But the GAF, in a statement issued on Saturday, 20th January, and signed by its Director of Public Relations, Brigadier General E Aggrey-Quashie, countered the NDC MP's stance saying the soldiers from the 11 Mechanised Battalion, were shot at by some four men and they rather “returned fire spontaneously neutralising three of the assailants”.On the 19th of January 2024, it was reported that some military personnel took custody of some young men at Sabongari in the Upper East region and drove them to an unknown location.The report further indicates that the Assemblyman for the area went to plead for the release of the three persons but the military allegedly threatened to shoot him (Assemblyman) if he did not back off.Not long afterward, news of the death of the three persons was heard thereby resulting in an uproar in the Sbongari community.