Late Major Mahama’s family storms Denkyira-Boase

Last Friday, June 30, 2017 marked exactly a month after the gruesome murder of Major Maxwell Adam Mahama at Debkyiria-Boase in the Upper Denkyira West District of the Central Region.

Angry residents who claimed he was an armed robber, pummeled him with various life threatening objects amidst shouts of “I am not a thief, I am a soldier” till he gave up the ghost in such a horrendous manner that sent shockwaves through the nation and got the citizenry talking.

In commemoration of a month after his death, the family visited the scene of the unfortunate incident after a number of catholic priests had earlier also gone there and admonish residents to redeem the image of the place by living reformed lives.

This is a detailed account of what transpired there as narrated by a relation

To mark the occasion, the family of Major Maxwell Mahama, made up of the father’s side (where I belong), the mother’s side and the wife’s side with the support of the army, the police and the Central Regional Coordinating Council visited Denkyira-Bose to see at first hand where Maxwell had his last breath.

Apart from seeing the site of his death the visit was also to enable us put the story we have heard so far from the police investigators into context or perspective.

We arrived at Diaso by helicopter at about 10 a.m. and drove to Denkyira-Boase a distance of about 15 km in a convoy.

We had two very senior police officers with us one of whom happens to be part of the police investigating team and who took the opportunity to walk us through what the police have been able to put together so far with regards to what happened that day.

We started from where the women who were selling foodstuffs and who Maxwell talked to among other things to find out how far the next village was.

It’s one of these women who is alleged to have phoned the assemblyman of her suspicions when she noticed a side arm on Maxwell.

We were taken through up to the last point Maxwell gave up and took his last breathe.

That’s the wall where he took his last barrage of all sorts of missiles or objects of destruction. We could still see blood stains on the wall and that’s where we all broke down and started crying.

The scene there became more or less a reenactment of what took place when Maxwell’s death was first broken to us in his house at Burma camp.

His father and mother were particularly so much heartbroken and both wept uncontrollably and immediately left the scene back to Diaso.

The rest of us who remained met the chiefs and elders of Denkyira-Boase who had gathered not far from where Maxwell died to welcome us.

The Deputy Central Regional Minister who was with us told the chiefs and elders of our mission after the welcoming formalities.

He also on behalf of the region rendered an unqualified apology to the family and all Ghanaians and to say that never again should such a thing happen anywhere in Ghana let alone in the region.

After him, two chiefs spoke and they all started by apologizing to us for what happened and to assure us that never again will such a thing happen in their traditional area.

They also informed us of the formation of a task force by chiefs to assist the police in their search for and arrest of the perpetrators of the crime and to bring to the attention of the police any other useful information that they may come across or that may come to their notice.

The police who were present confirmed what the chiefs had said and thanked them for their help because through them the police were able to make some progress with the investigations.

All in the entire journey was a worthwhile one.