Sogakope murder: Inconclusive investigations, unprofessional police cause of civil unrest - Murtala

General Secretary of the Progressive People's Party [PPP], Murtala Mohammed, believes certain actions, especially vigilante justice by members of the public are as a result of their lack of faith in the security agencies.

To him, youth of Sogakope deliberately blocked the road leading to the main Sogakope Bridge after the death of their Assemblyman, Marcus Mawutor Adzahli because they believed findings about the case will not be a true reflection of what actually happened.

“…They [Sogakope South Electoral Area youth] took laws into their hands and blocked roads because they have seen almost every investigated case, particularly ones associated with death not ending well to the satisfaction of families who have lost their loved ones, even though I don’t side with their actions,” he stated.

Rioting and military intervention

Some rioting youth in Sogakope in the South Tongu District of the Volta region, on Monday, blocked the main Accra-Aflao road, burnt car tyres and attacked the District Police Station over the alleged murder of the Assemblyman of Sogakope South Electoral Area.

The deceased, Mr Marcus Mawutor Adzahli, alias Mac Greenline, was allegedly shot dead midnight at his residence on Sunday by some eight unknown assailants with his wife sustaining knife wounds.

The youth, in protest of the incident, accusing the police of laxity, blocked the road, burnt tyres, threw stones and later besieged the District Police station in an attempt to burn it down.

The District Police Commander and a few police officers fired warning shots to disperse the crowd.

Despite having retreated, they continued throwing stones into the Police yard and offices and damaged the windscreen of some vehicles. An hour later, the militry was called in to clear the road and help the police contain the situation.



Unprofessional police officers

Speaking on UTV’s ‘Adekye Nsroma’ newspaper discussion programme, the PPP communicator bemoaned the unprofessional nature of some security officers to seek justice for the downtrodden.

“I don’t know why cases of this nature stall, the main reason why some individuals take laws into their hands to seek justice is because of that.....there are no tangible reasons why cases are not investigated to the root...I believe the police are not doing enough in this regard," Murtala added.