Chief, 4 others shot over alleged chieftaincy dispute in Tamale

A chief in Tamale, Dakpema Naa Bawa Fuseini, and four other persons have sustained gunshot wounds after some unknown gunmen attacked the palace in the early hours of yesterday.

The chief is said to have been shot in the head and stomach and was rushed to the Tamale Teaching Hospital together with the other victims.

The gunmen, numbering about 15, are said to have stormed the palace at about 5 a.m. and shot sporadically, injuring the victims and destroying other property.

Though the cause of the attack is not yet known, reports suggest that the incident was linked to the recent impasse between the Dakpema and other chiefs in the metropolis over who is the paramount chief of Tamale.

Briefing the media yesterday, the Northern Regional Police Crime Officer, Superintendent Bernard Baba Ananga, said the police received information about the incident and swiftly deployed personnel to the palace, but the gunmen had fled the scene.

He explained that a group of young men in a Toyota Pickup invaded the palace and fired indiscriminately, injuring the chief and the other persons who were around the scene.

“We have visited the chief and the other injured persons at the hospital and they are in stable condition, responding to medical care,” Supt Ananga said.

He indicated that the police had launched an investigation into the incident to apprehend the perpetrators, adding that a joint police and military personnel had also been deployed to ensure calm.

Incident

When the Daily Graphic visited the palace, it was observed that motorbikes and other items were also destroyed in the attack.

Deep marks of bullets were visible on the walls of the palace and other buildings around.

Narrating the incident to the media, an attendant at the Dakpema palace, Adam Musah, said the attack took place after the talking drum was beaten in the palace in the early hours of yesterday.

He said the gunmen after firing the gunshots attempted to carry the talking drums away, but the youth of the area fiercely resisted the move.