There is mounting tension in the Tamale Metropolis as a result of Butchers refusal to move to a new site allocated for them.
According to a report file by Peace FM?s correspondent in the Northern Region, Osman Dauda, the butchers are at variance with the authorities designated to man the new abattoir. They were given a deadline to vacate the old abattoir to the new one allocated for them, but they have refused to heed to the directive which expired yesterday.
As at 9am yesterday, September 15, most shops in Central Tamale had been closed down thus rendering Business coming to an abrupt halt, but for the timely intervention of a joint Military/Police operation, the scenario would have been a deadly one.
Three persons sustained gunshot wounds following the impasse between butchers over the management of the Central Abattoir constructed by the Metropolitan Assembly. The injured persons identified as Alhassan Abdul-Kahad, Alhassan Mohammed Hafiz and Mohammed Abdul Abdallah, are on admission at the Tamale Teaching Hospital.
According to reports, an unidentified man who was assaulted by a mob for allegedly shooting at somebody was also on admission in critical condition. The butchers, drawn from Sakasaka, Aboabo and Tamale Central Market, were opposed to an entrepreneur who had won a bid to manage the abattoir. The Metropolitan Assembly had a meeting with the butchers over the stalemate on Wednesday September 15.
The Assembly therefore decided to suspend the inauguration of the abattoir, which should have taken place on Thursday, September 16, but the decision did not get to the butchers. The butchers at Aboabo were prevented by their colleagues from doing business leading to the shoot out.
Meanwhile, the Northern Regional Police Commander, George Oppong-Asante has appealed for calm in the area as a solution is being sought. "The Regional Security Council is meeting with the Chiefs in the Metropolis to find an amicable solution to the problems of the abattoir," he said.
In a related development, the Commanding Officer of the 6BN, Mr William Omane-Agyekum in an interview with our correspondent revealed that the security forces have retrieved some locally manufactured shotguns among other weapons. He noted that the Security forces are in full
