The ongoing conflict in Bawku in the Upper East Region took a twist on Monday, October 4, 2024, when a group of unidentified youth reportedly locked up the Bawku Municipal Assembly and the Binduri District Assembly.
According to a Citinewsroom.com report, the group, following the act, made a direct demand for the arrest of Alhaji Seidu Abagre as a precondition for reopening the locked-up offices.
“We can’t say for certain what sparked this action, but intelligence suggests that the youth group is behind the closure, insisting on Alhaji Seidu Abagre’s arrest as a condition for reopening the offices.
“So, when you go to the Bawku Municipal Assembly, the notice is written there that arrest Seidu Abagre or their next action is not going to be good. So that is what is happening now, and it is a similar thing that has happened at the Binduri District Assembly, which happens to be one of the district assemblies closest to the Bawku Municipal.
“So, they have also closed that facility. The things that were in front of the District Assembly, the DRIP vehicle and other vehicles, have been parked away… For now, it is getting volatile. Just this morning, there were exchanges of gunshots here and there. It has not been that cool since the return of the rival chief to Bawku,” a local journalist, Ibrahim Agode, is reported to have said.
The chieftaincy dispute-fueled Bawku conflict caused Seidu Abagre to flee Bawku following the issuance of an arrest warrant against him over his contested installation as Chief of Bawku.
He has since returned to Bawku following the quashing of his arrest warrant by a High Court ruling on October 17, 2024.
The arrival of the rival chief in Bawku has led to a resurgence of sporadic attacks and gunshots, which have seen dozens dead and various properties destroyed.
The Ministry of the Interior recently announced a 12-hour daily curfew on Bawku. The curfew restricts movements within Bawku between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. each day.
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