The Ashanti Regional Coordinating Council intends to take action against cattle responsible for damaging trees in the region, especially those planted outside reserves.
The Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, highlighted the destruction of royal palms in urban areas caused by cattle, leading to significant losses for the state.
He emphasized the council’s zero-tolerance policy towards such destruction and vowed to apprehend the cattle and fine their owners before releasing the animals.
In addition to addressing the cattle issue, Mr. Mensah condemned illegal mining activities that are wreaking havoc on lands and reserves, urging an end to these detrimental practices.
Mr. Mensah made these statements during the Green Ghana Day event in Kumasi, where the goal of planting 2.5 million trees in the region was announced.
The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, joined schools, churches, and various non-governmental organizations in the tree-planting initiative.
The Ashanti Regional Security Council has taken decisive steps to tackle the issue of stray cattle on the streets of Kumasi by establishing a dedicated task force.
Announcing the initiative during a press briefing, Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah stated that the objective is to reclaim the city from the intrusion of these animals.
Following an inspection of newly planted trees as part of the Green Ghana Day initiative, the Regional Minister emphasized the negative impact of roaming cattle on the region’s greening efforts.
Recognizing the challenge of restraining cattle, Mr. Osei Mensah explained the rationale behind forming an external task force. He mentioned that task force members would be compensated for their services and entrusted with protecting the planted trees from cattle interference.
Mr. Osei Mensah assured that the allocated budget would cover the task force’s expenses for an initial one-year period and could be renewed based on resource availability.
“You know, it is not easy to catch a cow. It is extremely difficult, so we are going to get some of those people who are good at it to do the work for us. We are going to engage them, we will pay them, and it will be their responsibility to ensure that the trees that we planted will not be consumed by or destroyed by the cattle.
“We will pay them during the period that is for a whole year, and if it is possible to have adequate resources to sustain it, then we sustain them the following year too.”
Ashanti Regional Minister Simon Osei-Mensah has raised concerns about the ongoing destruction of trees planted along streets and other areas in parts of the region by stray animals.
“We have tried to regreen Kumasi to bring back the garden city that we all knew, unfortunately, we are disturbed by cattle. Almost all the trees we planted in 2023 have been destroyed.
The Ashanti Regional Security Council has issued a warning, stating its intention to start taking custody of stray cattle left unconfined by their owners.
In various parts of the Ashanti Region, stray animals are often left to roam freely, causing damage to both public and private properties. Additionally, these animals sometimes contribute to vehicular traffic, creating a public nuisance.
Chairing the Security Council, Ashanti Regional Minister Simon Osei-Mensah emphasized that action will be taken against the owners of these stray animals.
“This time we are going to take stringent action against the owners of the cattle. We’re going to engage people who are good at catching stray cattle, we will pay them within that period, and they will ensure that the trees are not destroyed by cattle.”
The Ashanti Regional Security Council has issued a warning, stating its intention to start taking custody of stray cattle left unconfined by their owners.
The council raised concerns about the ongoing destruction of trees planted along streets and other areas in parts of the region by stray animals.
In various parts of the Ashanti Region, stray animals are often left to roam freely, causing damage to both public and private properties. Additionally, these animals sometimes contribute to vehicular traffic, creating a public nuisance.
Chairing the Security Council, Ashanti Regional Minister Simon Osei-Mensah emphasized that action will be taken against the owners of these stray animals.
“We have tried to regreen Kumasi to bring back the garden city that we all knew, unfortunately, we are disturbed by cattle. Almost all the trees we planted in 2023 have been destroyed.
“This time we are going to take stringent action against the owners of the cattle. We’re going to engage people who are good at catching stray cattle, we will pay them within that period, and they will ensure that the trees are not destroyed by cattle.”
Six suspected livestock rustlers from Kenya who were detained in Uganda’s Turkana area’s Karamoja region have been handed over.
The Ugandan military turned over the suspects to the Turkana County administration as a “gesture of East African Community partnership and as a show of peaceful coexistence.”
The practice supervised by Brig Gen Felix Busizoori of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) was done in Moroto Army Barracks in northern Uganda and attended by Turkana County secretary and head of public service, Peter Eripete.
“The Turkana suspects were arrested alongside their kinship, the native Matheniko in different cordon and search operations where they were engaged in cattle rustling in Karamoja sub-region between 20th February to 26 February 2023,” the UPDF said Monday.
Brig Gen Busizoori urged Kenyan authorities to “penalise the suspects for abusing the peaceful co-existence and cross-border security arrangements”, saying letting them off the hook would encourage impunity.
He warned that those caught violating Ugandan laws would face the law in the country.
UPDF said eight Matheniko suspects arrested alongside the Turkanas would be subjected to Uganda’s courts of law.
Last month, Kenya and Uganda initiated talks to open a one-stop border post in Lokiriama in northwest Kenya, that would seek to open up trade and fight livestock raids.
The two countries revived their September 2019 memorandum of understanding that sought to enhance cross-border trade between the Turkana and Karamoja, by establishing immigration and customs border points at Lokiriama, Nawountos and Nakitong’o.
The border region is mainly occupied by the Turkana and Pokot ethnic communities in northwestern Kenya, and the Karamajong, an ethnic group of agro-pastoral herders living in the northeast of Uganda.
These communities have over the years engaged in banditry, making the region unsafe. The two countries, however, see the opening of the border post as one of the measures to end cattle rustling or stock theft, an age-old tradition that has been commercialised by international criminal networks in East Africa and the Horn.
South Africans are waiting, many in deep trepidation, to find out if President Cyril Ramaphosa is about to resign in the wake of a murky and highly politicised scandal involving cattle, a sofa, and the theft of hundreds of thousands (and possibly millions) of dollars.
Much now hangs on a meeting, starting on Friday, of the leaders of the country’s governing party, the African National Congress (ANC).
Mr Ramaphosa’s most ardent supporters – and he remains a popular leader – frame this moment as an all-or-nothing fight between a decent man, desperately trying to clean up a corruption-ridden country, and the forces of chaos with the ANC who are trying to get rid of him in order to keep hold of their loot and keep themselves out of prison.
One commentator likened the drama to Shakespeare’s Henry V, urging Mr Ramaphosa to “stiffen the sinews” and fight to clear his name.
There’s no doubt that the case against Mr Ramaphosa was – at least to begin with – politically motivated.
A well-known political rival, linked to South Africa’s disgraced former President, Jacob Zuma, dramatically revealed allegations that millions of dollars – hidden in a sofa – had gone missing from Mr Ramaphosa’s high-end Phala Phala game farm, and that there had been a police cover-up.
The president – a wealthy businessman and former liberation struggle icon, once backed by Nelson Mandela to succeed him – loftily declared that he was innocent.
But the story has not gone away, and over time, as fresh details and denials have leaked out, even some of his supporters have acknowledged that the scandal has been poorly handled by Mr Ramaphosa and his aides.
“There are questions that he has not been able to answer… about these huge sums of cash. He’d told us he’d put all these [businesses] in blind trust. I think he was very clumsy and careless… and out of touch,” said Nombonisa Gasa, a political analyst.
So now what?
In the over-heated world of the ANC – a party so long in power that its furious internal feuds now feel more like open-warfare – the campaigning and jockeying are in full swing.
The party is due to select a leader later this month – with Mr Ramaphosa an easy favourite to win. But those calculations are now changing fast.
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, The process of finding a successor for Mr Ramaphosa may weaken the ANC heading to the next elections
It’s been widely reported that Mr Ramaphosa has already decided to quit, but is being persuaded by allies to think again, or at least to buy time in order to ensure a smooth transition to someone credible.
His current deputy, and automatic heir, Vice-President David Dabede Mabuza, is not tipped as the right man for that role.
But could anyone in the current ANC leadership – so many tainted, themselves, by allegations of corruption – garner the levels of nationwide popular support that Mr Ramaphosa still enjoys?
And if not, are we watching the slow unravelling of the party that once liberated South Africa from apartheid – and election defeat in 2024?
South Africa’s main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, is certainly hoping to capitalise on the current crisis, calling for early elections. Some analysts see the ANC’s decline as both inevitable, and good for the country’s young democracy.
“Most South Africans are really concerned about what will happen next. Because there is no-one ready to [replace Mr Ramaphosa]. But this is the beginning of the end for the ANC – and that’s a good thing. The ANC has done its job. It liberated the country. It’s time for something new,” said political analyst Thembisa Fakude.
“I think South Africa has managed to establish very strong democratic shock absorbers, and [Mr Ramaphosa’s resignation – if it happens, would be] exemplary for Africa – here’s a leader who voluntarily resigned.”
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Former President Jacob Zuma remains an influential figure in the country’s politics
It seems unlikely – but still possible – that Mr Zuma’s faction within the ANC will be able to capitalise on the chaos, return to power, and derail the entire anti-corruption drive. That would be a recipe for political oblivion at the next elections.
“The Zuma faction is battling to cohere, beyond a group of people have grievances because they might face charges of corruption. But it’s too early to say they cannot come back,” said Ms Gasa.
But even a moderately competent replacement for Mr Ramaphosa is likely to shake the markets and drive away the few foreign investors still willing to give South Africa a chance, at a time when the economy – grappling with almost daily power cuts – is struggling to recover from the pandemic, and from the years of state corruption during Mr Zuma’s era.
Last year, the feuding within the ANC triggered riots in Durban and elsewhere that left more than 300 people dead and caused billions of dollars in damages. There was a sense then that South Africa had peered over the abyss and stepped back – that it now understood how fragile its young democracy was.
That may be the case, but with no single, credible party poised to capitalise on the ANC’s struggles, the concern here is that South Africa is heading towards an era of deeply unpredictable and unstable coalition politics, easily exploited by smaller populist parties.
As for President Ramaphosa himself – many wonder whether he has the stomach for a long fight, or whether the billionaire businessman, credited for his institution-building approach to government, but criticised for a lack of political muscle – may prefer to leave the ANC to its battles and return to his cattle ranch.
“He did not have enough fighting instinct and an ability to go for the jugular, in getting rid of the most toxic anti-constitutional folk [in the ANC]. We needed someone with a more muscular approach,” said political analyst Eusebius McKaiser.
Seven things about Cyril Ramaphosa:
Image source, AFP
Born in Soweto, Johannesburg, in 1952
Detained in 1974 and 1976 for anti-apartheid activities and launched the National Union of Mineworkers in 1982
Chairman of the National Reception Committee which prepared for Nelson Mandela’s release from prison in 1990
Became an MP and chairman of constitutional assembly in 1994
Moved full-time into business in 1997, becoming one of South Africa’s richest businessmen
On Lonmin board during 2012 Marikana massacre
Elected ANC leader in 2017 and on 15 February 2018 became president after the resignation of Jacob Zuma
A family based in the Nkoranza South Municipality of the Bono East Region is living in fear following two separate robbery attacks on his life.
Their fears are premised on the fact that they have already survived two separate robbery attacks in September 2021 and August 2022.
Narrating the ordeals, Alhaji Adam Mamudu, a cattle dealer indicated that although they have survived the attacks, he believes he and his family have become endangered species at the hands of criminals and are no longer safe.
Showing evidence of the first attack, Alhaji Adam Mamudu disclosed that he was trailed and allegedly shot by two individuals, Thunder and Iddrisu, around 8:00 pm by the roadside but the suspects are walking freely in the community after they were arrested and arraigned before court.
“I had gone to visit the sick son of my herdsman when I was trailed by some individuals on a motorbike and shot at the back but thankfully I survived. The sad reality is that even though I saw and reported the suspects to the police, they are walking freely after their arrest and subsequent bail by the court”.
He added that the second attack occurred at a village called Dinkra closer to Dromankese where he was robbed of an amount of GHC8,000 and his son who was with him kidnapped for a ransom which he paid before his release.
“I was attacked again two months ago at Dinkra. They robbed me of all the GHC8,000 on me, kidnapped my son and demanded an amount of GHC100, 000 as ransom”.
He stressed that there is no doubt that the criminals live in the community with them due to the nature of the attacks and their modus operandi which has heightened his fears.
“I am living in fear and not just me but my family members due to the nature of the attacks and the persons behind the attacks. I am convinced that the criminals are with us in the community and they monitor all our activities”.
Kidnap account by son
Haruna Mamudu, the son of Alhaji Adam Mamudu who was allegedly kidnapped by the robbers has confirmed the incident and the subsequent request for a ransom.
According to him, he was taken deep into the bush awaiting payment of the ransom by his father before he was released by his captors.
“When I was kidnapped, they took me deep into the bush, an area I don’t know and waited for the payment of a ramson by my father. They only released me after the ramson had been paid”.
Call for intense security by police
The family is calling on the police to intensify security in the area to cramp down on the activities of criminals in Nkoranza and its environs.
A 57-year-old farmer nearly lost his life at Gomoa Akotsi after he was gored by a cow while returning from the farm.
The farmer, Kojo Attah, popularly know as Okyeman was rushed to the village of hope hospital in Gomoa Fetteh where he received treatment.
According to Kojo Attah, he was returning from the farm together with his wife, but upon reaching a section of the road, they saw the cattle standing in the middle of the road and in an attempt to get the animal off the road, the cow gored him in the throat.
“We were returning from the farm at around 6 pm and upon reaching a section of the road, we saw the cattle standing in the middle of the road. So I decided to get it off. But the animal runs into the bush and then from nowhere it attacked me again with his horn and I fell flat on the ground bleeding. I realised I was bleeding profusely so I shouted for help and people came to my rescue,†Kojo Attah said.
He indicated that such attacks are rampant in the area.
“This is not the first time someone has been attacked, this has been a regular thing and these animals sometimes destroy our farms. So I believe the cattle farmers have not done enough to protect their animals that is the reason why we are seeing many of such attacks,†Kojo Attah said.
Assemblyman for Ojobi Akotsi Electoral area, Geoffrey Panin Nkum told Citi News that they will engage the chiefs and nomadic herdsmen in the area to find a lasting solution to this menace.
