Photos of 500 Western Togoland militants emerge

The Homeland Study Group Foundation, the masterminds of the Western Togoland secessionist movement, seem bent on pushing through an agenda.

Photos of what looks like a parade of the group's militants have emerged.

Already, the group has warned the Ghana Police Service and the military to stay indoors till further notice or surrender peacefully to "security forces".

The photos posted on Facebook by a known supporter of the movement ‘Akplaga Sogbolisa’ claim some 500 forces have been passed out.

“Another successful passing out ceremony here at Western Togoland for 500 junior and senior officers at the 3 camps,” the caption that came with the photos claimed.

The group on the dawn of Friday, September 25, 2020, blocked major roads leading to the Volta Region – Kpong, Juapong and Sogakope – burning vehicle tyres and demonstrating to press home their demands for independence of Western Togoland.

HSGF claims that Western Togoland was an independent state before it was forced to join Ghana after the 1956 plebiscite.

Per their demands, Volta and Oti regions, parts of Northern Region, North East region and Upper East Region will become part of a new Western Togoland state.

In a statement issued on Friday afternoon, they pointed out that the restoration to Western Togoland statehood, under the leadership of Togbe Yesu Kwabla Edudzi I, is being consolidated.

According to the group, Togbe Yesu is the Chairman of Western Togoland Restoration Front (WTRF), the political wing of the Western Togoland independence struggle.

The western part of Togoland became part of Britain's Gold Coast colony, which became independent in 1957 to form modern-day Ghana. Togo gained independence from France in 1960.

Western Togoland is a member of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation (UNPO). Four million people live in the region. In terms of language and culture, Western Togoland, especially the Volta region, has more in common with Togo. Locals in the region say they feel underrepresented by Ghanaian authorities.

Below is the photos of the passing out ceremony for the 500 militants.