According to the Minister of the Interior, Ambrose Dery, the prevailing situation was an indictment on the conscience of the current generation, adding that they would be judged by posterity if they left Bawku in a worse situation.

“I must tell you that you cannot let your children inherit a worse Bawku than what was bequeathed to you by your parents. I implore you to let peace prevail, so that you can leave a peaceful and prosperous Bawku behind for your children to live in,” he added.

The minister was speaking when he led a high-powered delegation to Bawku last Saturday to interact with the leadership of the Kusasis and the Mamprusis and discuss measures to ensure permanent peace in the area.

“We have come here to tell you to give us a chance to ensure lasting peace in Bawku for the benefit of all,” he said.

Mr Dery was accompanied by the Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul; the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Dr George Akuffo Dampare; the Chief of the Defence Staff, Vice-Admiral Seth Amoama; the Upper East Regional Minister, Stephen Yakubu; a security analyst, Adam Bonaa; the Bawku Municipal Chief Executive, Amadu Hamza, among others.

The delegation called on the Bawku Naba, Zug-Raan Naba Asigri Abugrago Azoka II, and his elders, Mamprusi elders, as well as Mamprusi and Kusasi youth groups.

According to the minister, the delegation “has come here to tell you that we need absolute peace in Bawku, so that people can go back to their normal lives”.

“Due to the prevailing situation, there is the need to maintain the curfew, and so, unfortunately, you cannot live your lives freely.

We assure you that if you smoke the peace pipe, we will immediately review the recent ban on tricycles, popularly referred to as ‘yellow yellow’, the commonest means of transport in this area.

“But if you want to tell us that the only thing you know is war, we will be compelled to increase the curfew hours if that is what you want,” he added.

Mr Dery said the resort to violence at the least provocation was not only regrettable but also thwarting the growth of the commercial town and further plunging the people into poverty and deprivation.

He said despite having lived together for many years, it was worrying that Kusasis and Mamprusis, many of whom had inter-married, continue to fight between themselves, leading to worsening insecurity and its attendant consequences on their social and economic lives.

“On behalf of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, we appeal to you to lay down your guns and give peace a chance, so that social and economic lives will be brought back to the once vibrant Bawku,” Mr Dery said.

Pledge

Representatives of both the Kusasi and the Mamprusi youth groups pledged to put down their guns for peace to prevail, since according to them, the continued conflict was negatively affecting their daily lives.

They, however, appealed to the government to reconsider the ban on tricycles, since it was affecting the free movement of people, as well as the carting of goods to market centres.

In January this year, the Upper East Regional Security Council placed a ban on the use of motorbikes in the Bawku municipality and its environs due to the worsening security situation in the area.

The government also banned the carrying of arms, ammunition and other offensive weapons within the area.