5 Bawku rioters granted bail ( http://graphic.com.gh/General-News/5-bawku-rioters-granted-bail.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter)

Five suspects who were arrested by the Police in Bawku for breaching the Public Order Act have been granted bail. The five, including the Bawku Constituency Deputy Organizer of the National Democratic Congress Tanko Akologo were granted police inquiry bail following the intervention of regional NDC party officials. They were picked by the police for allegedly organizing press conferences to declare their opposition to the president's nominee of Mr. Amadu I.W. Karimu as Municipal Chief Executive for Bawku. Speaking to the Daily Graphic, the Bawku Divisional Police Commander, Chief Superintendent Ebenezer K. Asare said two of the five were released unconditionally on Monday evening after screening showed they had no link to the press conferences held in the municipality while the remaining three were released on police inquiry bail on Tuesday following an intervention by the regional party executives including Alhaji Mumuni Bonaba, the regional NDC party chairman. He said the regional party chairman gave an undertaken to advice the youth to put a stop to activities that threatens the security of the municipality. Ever since the President's nominee for the position of Municipal Chief Executive for Bawku was announced, some NDC youth in the area had organized press conferences to protest against the nomination. The aggrieved youth among several other allegations questioned the loyalty of the nominee to the NDC party and advised the President to reconsider his decision. Police however stepped in and arrested some leaders of the youth for failing to adhere to the public order act which require the organizers to inform the police of such mass gathering. On Sunday September 1,2013 at about 10:45 pm some shooting incidents was recorded in the municipality in what is believe to be connected to the agitations to have the nominee changed. Unidentified armed men stormed the offices of the Municipal Assembly and vandalized two vehicles of the assembly by firing into them. According to Chief Superintendent Asare, although members of the police patrol team wee dispatched to the direction of the gun shots, no one was arrested. He said 9 live AK 47 ammunition and 25 AK 47 empty shells were retrieved from the scene of the incident. He said the security personnel had put in stringent measures to ensure that the violence does not escalate and urged the people to remain calm and follow the right channel to address their grievances because the police service would not condone any miscreants. Meanwhile, the Regional Minister and Chairman of the Regional Security Council, Alhaji Limuna Mohammed-Muniru, has condemned the recent spate of shooting, press conferences and counter press conference that that hit Bawku following the announcement of the position of MCE for the area. Addressing members of the Upper East Regional branch Christian Council of Ghana, the regional minister said granted that the youth do not want the person nominated for the job,the best way to go about is to lobby assemblymen and women who have the mandate to confirm or reject the nominee. "You do not have to take to the streets. There are so many ways to communicate your dissatisfaction to the President and certainly violence is not part of it. There are quiet, civil ways of communicating your dissatisfaction" "We can't allow this lawlessness to continue, there must be discipline in our society" he said whole calling on the religious leaders to continue to partner government by inculcating in the youth the need to be discipline at all times.