Story: Albert K. Salia in Accra, Zakaria Alhassan in Tamale
TWO security analysts have described the action of the Northern Regional Minister, Mr Stephen Nayina, of sacking the Regional Police Commander, DCOP Ofosu Mensah-Gyeabour, out of a Regional Security Council meeting, as wrong and an abuse of office.
Dr Kwesi Aning, who is the Head of the Conflict Prevention Management and Resolution Department of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, and Mr Emmanuel Sowatey, a small arms expert, said even if the regional minister had a problem with the police commander, walking him out was not the best.
They wondered whether Mr Nayina had earlier complained to the Interior Minister and the acting Inspector-General of Police about any problems he (Nayina) was having with DCOP Mensah-Gyeabour.
The security experts were speaking in reaction to the dismissal of the Northern Regional Police Commander from a Regional Security Council meeting in Tamale on April 14, 2009 and his subsequent withdrawal by the Interior Minister and the acting IGP.
DCOP Mensah-Gyeabour was walked out of the meeting when it was discovered that he took the wind out of the sail of the regional minister to brief the media about some decisions taken to extend a one-month moratorium given all residents of Tamale to surrender their weapons.
Dr Aning said while the removal of the police commander could have been politically correct, it did not hold the key to the long-standing tension in the region.
He said the conduct of the regional minister so far clearly demonstrated his lack of understanding of the complex issues of security and suggested that Mr Nanyina be dismissed for gross incompetence in dealing with security issues in the region.
According to him, keeping the regional minister in office would not only make the work of the President difficult, but was also likely to escalate the tensions and unsettle the situation in the region.
He expressed regret that civil authority had been so abused that a competent police officer should be withdrawn from post.
According to him, the minister had failed and should be sacked.
Mr Sowatey explained that the position of the Regional Police Commander on the Regional Security Council (REGSEC) was mandated by the National Security and Intelligence Agencies Act, Act 526.
Mr Sowatey said Mr Ofosu-Gyeabour’s reputation and career had been dented by the action, which would make every minister or his subordinates not to trust him in whatever position.
He wondered whether prior to the incident, Mr Nayina had complained to the Interior Minister or the Inspector-General of Police about the conduct of Mr Ofosu-Gyeabour and what their reactions were.
Mr Sowatey wondered whether the minister’s anger about the police commander was because he (police boss) was the first to break the news about weapons-buy-back programme or REGSEC had not taken any firm decision on it.
He said if it was not time for the news to be made public then Mr Nayina had a genuine reason to be bitter but his approach of resolving the problem was wrong.
Meanwhile, Zakaria Alhassan reports from Tamale that there had been mixed reactions in Tamale over the incident.
While some people accused the minister of acting in bad faith, others described the action by the commander as unethical.
According to a retired military officer, Capt. Malik, “the manner in which the minister acted was not appropriate; he could have been more diplomatic and still has his way through. On the part of the police commander, I think he should have channelled his grievances through the appropriate quarters in the service and not be on the airwaves the manner he acted”.
A teacher, Mrs Comfort Abu, was not happy about the way the issue was managed. “The matter bordered on the security of the region and so the minister and the commander should have handled it more maturely than the way they did. It sends bad signals to the youth.”
“For me, the commander did not act professionally by disclosing to the press matters the REGSEC had discussed and agreed to unveil to the public the following day; he took the wind out of the sail of the minister and that might have angered the latter,” Abdul-Rahman Kadir opined.
A student, Hamdiya Mohammed, was also not glad that the minister “openly embarrassed the police boss in the midst of his colleagues; Mr Nayina could have handled it in a more diplomatic way”.
“The minister’s action was long overdue; the commander should have been transferred from the region after the election since some people in the metropolis have been suspecting his loyalty to the current government,” a trader, Alhaji Mumuni Bashiru, claimed.
Although the commander did not deny talking to the press when the Daily Graphic contacted him, he claimed that the action by the minister was premeditated.
According to him, the minister had since his assumption of office, chastised him at the least opportunity.
He mentioned a number of issues including an accusation by the minister, during a visit to Tamale by the Vice-President, Mr John Mahama, that the police were partly responsible for the tension that had generated during the trial of the suspects connected to the last two months’ disturbances in the metropolis for levelling the same charges against all the suspects.
Mr Mensah-Gyeabour also referred to a recent case in which his men arrested somebody with two guns and a knife during a hearing of the Bimbilla Chieftaincy case at the House of Chiefs in Tamale.
He alleged that when he subsequently went to the minister’s office, he was asked by Mr Nayina to go back and find a third gun that his men allegedly confiscated from the suspect because he the minister’s information was that the guns were three and not two.
The commander further claimed that during this year’s Damba festival, the minister allegedly asked him to confiscate the drums of one of the factions in the Dagbon Chieftaincy dispute.
However, when the minister was contacted, he denied some of the allegations and added, “I never asked him to go and confiscate anybody’s drum; that is his own fabrication.”
Thursday, April 30, 2009
VEEP BEMOANS CONFLICTS (APRIL 27, PAGE 3)
THE Vice-President, Mr John Mahama, has described as unfortunate the protracted conflicts that continue to draw back development in the northern part of the country.
He, however, expressed the government’s determination to ensure sustainable peace to attract the necessary development initiatives to the area.
He noted that the only way to guarantee peace in the area was to ensure even handedness in matters relating to breaches of the peace, for which reason the government “will hold people personally responsible for their actions, irrespective of their ethnic or political affiliations”.
Mr Mahama mentioned the National Peace Council, civil society organisations and traditional authorities as some of the stakeholders the government intended to involve in its peace drive enterprise.
He reminded the people that all the interventions by the government to ensure the accelerated development of the north, such as the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) initiative, would not produce the needed impact if there was no harmony among the people.
Mr Mahama, who was speaking at the investiture of the Metropolitan Catholic Archbishop of Tamale, the Most Reverend Philip Naameh, in Tamale at the weekend, lauded the Catholic Church for its tolerance of other religious denominations over the years.
“There is the need for people to learn from this illustrious example of coexistence and religious tolerance and extend such virtues to their communities and towns,” he admonished.
The new Archbishop, who was born at Nandom in the Upper West Region in 1948, is taking over from the Most Rev Gregory Kpiebaya, who is now retired.
Archbishop Naameh was, until his installation, the Bishop of the Damongo Diocese. He is also the Episcopal Chairman for Catholic Education in the country and a member of the Ghana Education Service Council.
The ceremony, which took place at the Jubilee Park, attracted a large congregation made up of the clergy and laymen and women from within and outside the country.
Also present were chiefs, members of the Council of State, Ministers of State, Members of Parliament and metropolitan and district chief executives.
The Vice-President also commended the church for its immeasurable service to humanity and described Archbishop Naameh as approachable, sincere and hardworking.
Archbishop Naameh noted that the existing conflicts in the area were partly the result of the deep-seated suspicion, bitterness and hatred among the feuding factions.
He also mentioned the high levels of illiteracy and ignorance as some of the reasons behind the disturbances, noting that “unity and peace are only possible if we allow ourselves to be guided by God’s spirit. It is only when God’s spirit guides us that we can heal our wounds, forgive one another and chart a progressive course for ourselves”.
The Archbishop further indicated that after 51 years of independence, the people could not continue to blame the colonial masters for their under-development and that what was needed was a strong political will to accelerate the socio-economic development of the north.
He entreated politicians from the area to unite for the common good of the people they represented and proposed that a percentage of the Value Added Tax be channelled into the SADA to ensure its sustainability.
He, however, expressed the government’s determination to ensure sustainable peace to attract the necessary development initiatives to the area.
He noted that the only way to guarantee peace in the area was to ensure even handedness in matters relating to breaches of the peace, for which reason the government “will hold people personally responsible for their actions, irrespective of their ethnic or political affiliations”.
Mr Mahama mentioned the National Peace Council, civil society organisations and traditional authorities as some of the stakeholders the government intended to involve in its peace drive enterprise.
He reminded the people that all the interventions by the government to ensure the accelerated development of the north, such as the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) initiative, would not produce the needed impact if there was no harmony among the people.
Mr Mahama, who was speaking at the investiture of the Metropolitan Catholic Archbishop of Tamale, the Most Reverend Philip Naameh, in Tamale at the weekend, lauded the Catholic Church for its tolerance of other religious denominations over the years.
“There is the need for people to learn from this illustrious example of coexistence and religious tolerance and extend such virtues to their communities and towns,” he admonished.
The new Archbishop, who was born at Nandom in the Upper West Region in 1948, is taking over from the Most Rev Gregory Kpiebaya, who is now retired.
Archbishop Naameh was, until his installation, the Bishop of the Damongo Diocese. He is also the Episcopal Chairman for Catholic Education in the country and a member of the Ghana Education Service Council.
The ceremony, which took place at the Jubilee Park, attracted a large congregation made up of the clergy and laymen and women from within and outside the country.
Also present were chiefs, members of the Council of State, Ministers of State, Members of Parliament and metropolitan and district chief executives.
The Vice-President also commended the church for its immeasurable service to humanity and described Archbishop Naameh as approachable, sincere and hardworking.
Archbishop Naameh noted that the existing conflicts in the area were partly the result of the deep-seated suspicion, bitterness and hatred among the feuding factions.
He also mentioned the high levels of illiteracy and ignorance as some of the reasons behind the disturbances, noting that “unity and peace are only possible if we allow ourselves to be guided by God’s spirit. It is only when God’s spirit guides us that we can heal our wounds, forgive one another and chart a progressive course for ourselves”.
The Archbishop further indicated that after 51 years of independence, the people could not continue to blame the colonial masters for their under-development and that what was needed was a strong political will to accelerate the socio-economic development of the north.
He entreated politicians from the area to unite for the common good of the people they represented and proposed that a percentage of the Value Added Tax be channelled into the SADA to ensure its sustainability.
MEDIA PRACTIONERS URGED TO BE CIRCUMSPECT (PAGE 29)
A Communication specialist and director of the Centre for Development Communication (CEDCOM),Mr Ibrahim Gariba, has cautioned media practitioners and FM stations in the Tamale metropolis to avoid creating unnecessary tension in the metropolis.
Instead, he said, they should unite residents to promote the development of the area.
“Media practitioners and FM stations must avoid focusing on religious, ethnic and chieftaincy issues to the detriment of promoting the development agenda of the metropolis,” he stressed.
Mr Gariba, who was speaking to the Daily Graphic in Tamale, noted that journalism in Ghana had since independence gone through different periods, adding that “we focus on the practice of development journalism in the era in which we are now ”.
He, however, singled out some journalists in the metropolis, who he said, had exhibited a lot of professionalism over the years, and advised the up and coming ones to emulate the more experienced practitioners.
The director further urged the practitioners to uphold the ethics of the profession and be circumspect when reporting on security matters to sustain the prevailing peace in the metropolis.
“A journalist is not a politician or corporate communications practitioner or a spokesperson for profit-making entities: In effect, some journalists have gleefully and shamelessly entered the pockets of corporate Ghana,” Mr Garb indicated.
He also urged media practitioners “to be responsible towards the ordinary citizen who has his or her own power and rights in the society”.
Instead, he said, they should unite residents to promote the development of the area.
“Media practitioners and FM stations must avoid focusing on religious, ethnic and chieftaincy issues to the detriment of promoting the development agenda of the metropolis,” he stressed.
Mr Gariba, who was speaking to the Daily Graphic in Tamale, noted that journalism in Ghana had since independence gone through different periods, adding that “we focus on the practice of development journalism in the era in which we are now ”.
He, however, singled out some journalists in the metropolis, who he said, had exhibited a lot of professionalism over the years, and advised the up and coming ones to emulate the more experienced practitioners.
The director further urged the practitioners to uphold the ethics of the profession and be circumspect when reporting on security matters to sustain the prevailing peace in the metropolis.
“A journalist is not a politician or corporate communications practitioner or a spokesperson for profit-making entities: In effect, some journalists have gleefully and shamelessly entered the pockets of corporate Ghana,” Mr Garb indicated.
He also urged media practitioners “to be responsible towards the ordinary citizen who has his or her own power and rights in the society”.
FAN MILK IMPROVES FACILTIES IN TAMALE (PAGE 29)
FANMILK Limited has, within the last six months, invested $1 million to improve its infrastructure in Tamale to serve the three northern regions.
It intends to invest an additional $500,000 to turn its depot in Tamale into a modern storage and distribution retail centre in the northern sector.
The Sales and Marketing Manager of Fanmilk, Mr Kwasi Attuah, said this after presenting a number of litter bins to the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly in Tamale on Monday.
The donation was in response to an earlier appeal by the assembly to companies in the area to donate towards keeping the city clean in connection with President Atta Mills’s call to rid the cities of filth.
Mr Attuah said the gesture was part of the company’s social responsibility to help address the sanitation needs of cities and towns in the country.
“Fanmilk has, over the past 15 years, also assisted a non-governmental organisation (NGO) to embark on clean-up exercises in various parts of the country,” he said.
According to him, the company had earlier presented similar bins to the University for Development Studies Medical School in Tamale, adding that its next stop would be the Yendi municipality.
He announced that 24 schools in the Tamale metropolis would soon benefit from the company’s sensitisation programme under which a film on the proper disposal of waste would be shown to the beneficiary schools.
The MCE of Tamale, who received the items, expressed appreciation to the benefactors and appealed to other companies and organisations to also extend support to the assembly in its sanitation and development drive.
He said the fast-growing metropolis had become cosmopolitan, was generating more waste and grappling with additional development challenges that needed the intervention of both the government and other stakeholders to address.
He noted that contrary to the negative perception some people had of the metropolis, Tamale was the hub of the proverbial Ghanaian hospitality, with a multiplicity of valued cultures and traditions.
He, therefore, urged potential investors and visitors alike not to hesitate in relocating to the city to enjoy its warmth and the business opportunities that it offered.
It intends to invest an additional $500,000 to turn its depot in Tamale into a modern storage and distribution retail centre in the northern sector.
The Sales and Marketing Manager of Fanmilk, Mr Kwasi Attuah, said this after presenting a number of litter bins to the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly in Tamale on Monday.
The donation was in response to an earlier appeal by the assembly to companies in the area to donate towards keeping the city clean in connection with President Atta Mills’s call to rid the cities of filth.
Mr Attuah said the gesture was part of the company’s social responsibility to help address the sanitation needs of cities and towns in the country.
“Fanmilk has, over the past 15 years, also assisted a non-governmental organisation (NGO) to embark on clean-up exercises in various parts of the country,” he said.
According to him, the company had earlier presented similar bins to the University for Development Studies Medical School in Tamale, adding that its next stop would be the Yendi municipality.
He announced that 24 schools in the Tamale metropolis would soon benefit from the company’s sensitisation programme under which a film on the proper disposal of waste would be shown to the beneficiary schools.
The MCE of Tamale, who received the items, expressed appreciation to the benefactors and appealed to other companies and organisations to also extend support to the assembly in its sanitation and development drive.
He said the fast-growing metropolis had become cosmopolitan, was generating more waste and grappling with additional development challenges that needed the intervention of both the government and other stakeholders to address.
He noted that contrary to the negative perception some people had of the metropolis, Tamale was the hub of the proverbial Ghanaian hospitality, with a multiplicity of valued cultures and traditions.
He, therefore, urged potential investors and visitors alike not to hesitate in relocating to the city to enjoy its warmth and the business opportunities that it offered.
TAMALE GETS NEW MCE (PAGE 29)
THE Tamale Metropolitan Assembly (TAMA) now has a new chief executive in the person of Alhaji Abdulai Harruna Friday.
Alhaji Friday comes to the assembly with much experience, having been a former District Chief Executive for Savelugu/Nanton in the late 1990s.
It is because of his track record and admirable interpersonal relationships that majority of residents of the metropolis have welcomed his confirmation as MCE.
The process for his confirmation last Tuesday attracted a large crowd of enthusiastic supporters, including some prominent chiefs in the metropolis. And at the close of voting, 69 out of the 72 members present, representing 96 per cent, voted in favour of Alhaji Friday, while the rest of the ballots were spoilt.
According to the people, Alhaji Friday was not only mature and experienced as a former DCE but also had the temperament to address people’s concerns.
“Tamale has become cosmopolitan and we need such mature and experienced people to manage the affairs of the metropolis. For that matter, I think President Mills made the right choice,” Iddi Mumuni, a student, opined.
Tamale is undoubtedly one of the emerging cities in the country with much potential for accelerated growth. Indeed, it is among the fastest growing cities in the West African sub-region.
It has, unfortunately, also attracted bad press following the political and chieftaincy disturbances in the area for some time now.
It is for this reason that anybody who is offered the privilege of managing the affairs of the area should not only be tolerant and patient but must also be a unifier and team player.
The existing differences in the Dagbon chieftaincy crisis is the stumbling block to the attainment of lasting peace in the area.
It, therefore, behoves Alhaji Friday to work assiduously to ensure peace in the area for accelerated development.
It was refreshing to hear him assure members of the assembly, “I will use consultation and fairness as the hallmarks of my administration and will consult honourable members on all issues that demand consultation and collective decision- making and taking.”
Another area of interest is how to control the growing levels of impunity and indiscipline that have been allowed to fester in the metropolis over the years.
The MCE promised to operate an open administration and would liaise with all stakeholders to help in restoring the battered image of the metropolis.
Alhaji Friday comes to the assembly with much experience, having been a former District Chief Executive for Savelugu/Nanton in the late 1990s.
It is because of his track record and admirable interpersonal relationships that majority of residents of the metropolis have welcomed his confirmation as MCE.
The process for his confirmation last Tuesday attracted a large crowd of enthusiastic supporters, including some prominent chiefs in the metropolis. And at the close of voting, 69 out of the 72 members present, representing 96 per cent, voted in favour of Alhaji Friday, while the rest of the ballots were spoilt.
According to the people, Alhaji Friday was not only mature and experienced as a former DCE but also had the temperament to address people’s concerns.
“Tamale has become cosmopolitan and we need such mature and experienced people to manage the affairs of the metropolis. For that matter, I think President Mills made the right choice,” Iddi Mumuni, a student, opined.
Tamale is undoubtedly one of the emerging cities in the country with much potential for accelerated growth. Indeed, it is among the fastest growing cities in the West African sub-region.
It has, unfortunately, also attracted bad press following the political and chieftaincy disturbances in the area for some time now.
It is for this reason that anybody who is offered the privilege of managing the affairs of the area should not only be tolerant and patient but must also be a unifier and team player.
The existing differences in the Dagbon chieftaincy crisis is the stumbling block to the attainment of lasting peace in the area.
It, therefore, behoves Alhaji Friday to work assiduously to ensure peace in the area for accelerated development.
It was refreshing to hear him assure members of the assembly, “I will use consultation and fairness as the hallmarks of my administration and will consult honourable members on all issues that demand consultation and collective decision- making and taking.”
Another area of interest is how to control the growing levels of impunity and indiscipline that have been allowed to fester in the metropolis over the years.
The MCE promised to operate an open administration and would liaise with all stakeholders to help in restoring the battered image of the metropolis.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
PARENTS URGED TO TAKE PROPER CARE OF CHILDREN (PAGE 20)
THE future of every nation depends largely on the proper upbringing of and care for its younger generation, majority of whom are less privileged and therefore vulnerable.
Indeed, it is not enough to just give birth to an innocent child, if you are not in the position to take proper care of the basic needs of the child such as food, clothing, health and education.
It is as a result of concerns for such susceptible children that a development consultant, Mrs Sylvia Hinson-Ekong, has entreated parents to be more responsible towards the upbringing of their wards in order that the children do not waste away to become liabilities to society.
She described as most unfortunate the tendency of some parents to shirk their responsibilities in the proper upbringing of their children and observed that such irresponsible behaviours also accounted for the increasing child labour and abuse in the country.
Mrs Hinson-Ekong further observed that the growing practice of nurturing, particularly that of inter-family fostering of children in some communities in the country, was being abused.
“The protection of a child by the parents is first and foremost; a child can only be fostered when the parent is abusive, mentally unbalanced or deceased, among other reasons,” she further explained.
Mrs Hinson-Ekong, therefore, reminded the people that the law on the protection of children still existed for which reason those who went contrary to it could be prosecuted.
The consultant was speaking at a three-day capacity building programme for stakeholders on child labour, prevention and integration in Tamale. The participants included trustees, management and field staff of the Regional Advisory, Information and Network Systems (RAINS), a Tamale-based non-governmental organisation (NGO).
The programme formed part of the “Next Generation” project of RAINS that aims at combating child trafficking with particular focus on fostering and inter-family fostering practices in the country.
The project is being implemented in the Savelugu/Nanton and West Mamprusi districts in the Northern Region.
In most communities in the region young girls under 10 years of age are sent to their aunties or other family members for grooming instead of being sent to schools.
In some cases, the girls are maltreated and molested, forcing them to flee home to southern Ghana to engage in menial jobs to earn income to buy their personal effects and also acquire vocational skills.
The Programme Manager of RAINS, Mr Alhassan Musah, explained that his outfit was now shifting its focus into building the capacity of stakeholders to support in stemming the tide.
Indeed, it is not enough to just give birth to an innocent child, if you are not in the position to take proper care of the basic needs of the child such as food, clothing, health and education.
It is as a result of concerns for such susceptible children that a development consultant, Mrs Sylvia Hinson-Ekong, has entreated parents to be more responsible towards the upbringing of their wards in order that the children do not waste away to become liabilities to society.
She described as most unfortunate the tendency of some parents to shirk their responsibilities in the proper upbringing of their children and observed that such irresponsible behaviours also accounted for the increasing child labour and abuse in the country.
Mrs Hinson-Ekong further observed that the growing practice of nurturing, particularly that of inter-family fostering of children in some communities in the country, was being abused.
“The protection of a child by the parents is first and foremost; a child can only be fostered when the parent is abusive, mentally unbalanced or deceased, among other reasons,” she further explained.
Mrs Hinson-Ekong, therefore, reminded the people that the law on the protection of children still existed for which reason those who went contrary to it could be prosecuted.
The consultant was speaking at a three-day capacity building programme for stakeholders on child labour, prevention and integration in Tamale. The participants included trustees, management and field staff of the Regional Advisory, Information and Network Systems (RAINS), a Tamale-based non-governmental organisation (NGO).
The programme formed part of the “Next Generation” project of RAINS that aims at combating child trafficking with particular focus on fostering and inter-family fostering practices in the country.
The project is being implemented in the Savelugu/Nanton and West Mamprusi districts in the Northern Region.
In most communities in the region young girls under 10 years of age are sent to their aunties or other family members for grooming instead of being sent to schools.
In some cases, the girls are maltreated and molested, forcing them to flee home to southern Ghana to engage in menial jobs to earn income to buy their personal effects and also acquire vocational skills.
The Programme Manager of RAINS, Mr Alhassan Musah, explained that his outfit was now shifting its focus into building the capacity of stakeholders to support in stemming the tide.
ACCIDENTS CLAIM MORE LIVES IN NORTHERN REGION (PAGE 20)
ACCIDENTS are largely caused by human errors. It takes some patience and carefulness and God’s intervention to steer clear of accidents that continue to claim the lives of many, maim others and cause misery to thousands of households.
The Northern Region Secretariat of the National Road Safety Committee has therefore expressed concern over the increasing spate of road accidents in the area and called on road users to exercise maximum restraint while driving, particularly on the highways.
Within the first quarter of this year, more than 64 people have lost their lives in road accidents as compared to 70 for the whole of last year in the region.
During the same period, about 130 people sustained various degrees of injury in the accidents.
The Northern Regional Co-ordinator of the committee, Mr Sumani Mbo, described the accident figures as “very worrying and unprecedented in the region’s history”.
The latest accident occurred around Kukobila near Walewale where six members of the Fountain Gate Chapel, including the two daughters of the Head Pastor of the church, Rev Eastwood Anaba, lost their lives in a crash.
A couple of months ago, a similar accident along the Walewale Road claimed more than 35 lives when two passenger vehicles collided.
Mr Mbo attributed the accidents mainly to human error and advised road users to strictly abide by road traffic regulations and also exercise patience in their haste to reach their destinations.
Among the blunders identified as part of the causes of accidents in the region were speeding, illegal parking, intermittent break of the traffic lights and drug and alcohol abuse.
Other problems include the plying of the roads with faulty and rickety vehicles, lack of adequate road signs, inaction by law enforcement agencies to duly apprehend and prosecute road traffic offenders and the lack of co-ordination among various stakeholders on road safety.
The Northern Region Secretariat of the National Road Safety Committee has therefore expressed concern over the increasing spate of road accidents in the area and called on road users to exercise maximum restraint while driving, particularly on the highways.
Within the first quarter of this year, more than 64 people have lost their lives in road accidents as compared to 70 for the whole of last year in the region.
During the same period, about 130 people sustained various degrees of injury in the accidents.
The Northern Regional Co-ordinator of the committee, Mr Sumani Mbo, described the accident figures as “very worrying and unprecedented in the region’s history”.
The latest accident occurred around Kukobila near Walewale where six members of the Fountain Gate Chapel, including the two daughters of the Head Pastor of the church, Rev Eastwood Anaba, lost their lives in a crash.
A couple of months ago, a similar accident along the Walewale Road claimed more than 35 lives when two passenger vehicles collided.
Mr Mbo attributed the accidents mainly to human error and advised road users to strictly abide by road traffic regulations and also exercise patience in their haste to reach their destinations.
Among the blunders identified as part of the causes of accidents in the region were speeding, illegal parking, intermittent break of the traffic lights and drug and alcohol abuse.
Other problems include the plying of the roads with faulty and rickety vehicles, lack of adequate road signs, inaction by law enforcement agencies to duly apprehend and prosecute road traffic offenders and the lack of co-ordination among various stakeholders on road safety.
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