Student identifies Legon entrance as unsafe

The area around Unipetrol Filling Station, close to the Ghana Hostels near the main entrance of the University of Ghana, Legon, is still not safe from criminal activities.

It is almost two years now when salesgirl fell victim and died from an attack by a gang of robbers who killed her and made away with her sales.

On May 10, 2003 almost two years later, Mr Benjamin Abiemo, a Level 100 Mathematical Sciences student resident at Legon Hall, on Sunday said he narrowly escaped death when two young men holding pistols emerged from that Unipetrol area, robbed him of his mobile phone, fired shots into his neck and bolted.

Mr Abiemo narrated his harrowing experience at the weekend at a press briefing in Accra prior to the launching of National Week of Action on Small Arms, which runs through June 2 to 8, to be performed by the Minister of the Interior.

Mr Abiemo said he was returning to the University campus in the evening about 1900 hours, and passed through the Ghana Hostels to the main entrance into the University.

The security personnel were not then at post. Suddenly the two young men emerged from behind and asked him to bring his cell phone.

A struggle ensued, and one held him, while the other fired a shot into the side of his neck.

He said he consequently became weak, and the two men had their way, robbing him of his mobile phone and an amount of 200,000 cedis.

Mr Abiemo said no one came to his rescue after the gunshot and as he walked feebly to the Legon Police Station, he saw the two young men, who he suspected of being some of the peddlers on then road, still hovering around.

The Officer on duty at the Legon Police Station told him there was no vehicle to send him to the Legon Hospital which was a about 300 metres away.

He said when he got to the Hospital, there was no doctor on duty and was therefore asked to go to the 37 Military Hospital.

Mr Abiemo said he passed through the Legon Police Station again, and had to give a promise of money before the Police Officer on duty rang the patrol team, which later came to transport him, to the 37 Military Hospital.

On arrival at the 37 Military Hospital, he was referred to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital for x-ray.

He said he was later admitted at the 37 Military Hospital for two weeks, but still had about seven pellets yet to be removed from the side of his neck.

Madam Afi Yakubu, Secretary of the Ghana Action Network on Small Arms (GHANSA), on behalf of GHANSA Chairman General Emmanuel Erskine, said her organisation was jointly organising the Week with the National Commission for Civic Education.

She said the Week, on the theme " Illicit Arms Kill: Act Against It," would be celebrated with 80 events in 32 countries around the world to heighten awareness on the small arms problem and the responsibility of governments to make their communities safer.

Madam Yakubu called on governments in the West Africa sub-region to redouble efforts to change their moratorium of the movement of small arms into a legislation to prevent the proliferation of small arms in the sub-region.