One killed in renewed chieftaincy clashes in B/A

A 34-year-old man died following renewed chieftaincy clashes at Kato, a village near Brekum in the Brong Ahafo Region, Monday morning, police say.

Edmund Opoku Appiah who sustained gunshot wounds was pronounced dead on arrival at the Brekum Government Hospital.

Two others, Hamza Muhammed and Dennis Kyere Yaw have been hospitalised after sustaining injuries in the violence.

Gunshots rang through the village as the two factions mounted roadblocks to prevent people from Sunyani and Berekum entering the town during what was suspected to be attempts to install a new chief.

One faction blocked a road to protest the installation of the chief while the other faction blocked another road leading to the town in retaliation.

They pelted stones at each other but this degenerated into the exchange of gunfire with one person hit and the two injured, according to an eyewitness, Kwame.

Background
Kato traditional area has not had a chief for over sixteen years after the death of Nana Kwadwo Kyere. One faction, the Nneantene royal family installed Nana Febiri Amoawi II in 2013, triggering a dispute

But the queen mother Hemaa, Nana Afia Siraa Ababio III disapproved of the installation, dissociated herself from the move. By tradition, queen mothers are supposed to endorse an installation to make it legitimate.

Nneantene royal family has scuttled several attempts by the Queen mother to install one Kwabena Owusu Ansah as chief.

The family and their supporters say Nana Afia Siraa Ababio is not the legitimate queen mother of the Kato traditional area.

The standoff passed through the Brong Ahafo Regional House of Chiefs but no resolution was reached.

Monday clash
The Queenmother planned to parade Kwabena Owusu Ansah as part of the installation processes. The police say they turned down her request for security during the installation.

"She was advised by the Municipal Security not to go ahead with the installation but she ignored," ASP Christopher Tawiah indicated.

The Nneantene family blocked the road leading to the town in protest of the installation but supporters of the queenmother and her candidate blocked the other side of the road in retaliation.

The disagreement became heated after the two sides resorted to stone-throwing. Multiple gunshots were heard in the ensuing exchanges.

Police from Sunyani and Brekum stormed the town, fired warning shots to disperse the feuding groups after the one person was shot and the two others got injured.

There is a heavy police presence in the town to ensure total calm, ASP Tawiah has assured.

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