Fear grips Kwatire residents, as get-rich quick behaviour among youth soar

The residents of Kwatire in the Sunyani West Municipality have complained of living in fear in the wake of the rising get-rich-quick mentality and behaviour, popularly known as ‘sakawa’ among the youth in the predominantly farming community.

They, therefore appealed to law enforcement agencies to monitor, check, and ascertain the sources of wealth of the young people in the area, whom they alleged were seriously engaging in rituals to acquire wealth and power.

The disturbing and unacceptable situation, according to Mr Stephen Takyi, the Assemblyman for Kwatire Electoral Area, was getting out of hand, saying something must be done immediately.

“My brother, the flashy cars and the ostentatious lifestyle of these unemployed young people raise a lot of questions about their source of wealth.

In fact, the extreme and immoderate behaviour of these young people are getting out of control and the security agencies must act fast,” Mr Takyi told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview at Kwatire.

Besides, the assembly member added “the boys are also putting up modern residential apartments and buying lands, but you can’t see any decent jobs they are engaged in”.

“Many of the residents now lived in fear because of the weird and worse behaviours the boys demonstrated at night hours,” he stated, saying most of the youth engaged in the sakawa syndrome were Senior High School graduates including foreign nationals.

In another interview, Nana Yaa Adanse Poduo II, the Paramount Queen mother of Odumase Number One in the Municipality expressed similar sentiments about the behaviour of the young people in the area who were mostly engaged in alcoholism and drug abuse.

She partly attributed it to rising youth unemployment and appealed to the government to create more jobs to help tackle the menace.

Nana Poduo II told the GNA sexual promiscuity and acts of immorality were also surging among the youth in the area and called for concerted approach to bring the situation under control.

She regretted that the future of many of the young boys and girls in the area remained bleak because of their unhealthy and unacceptable lifestyles.