News
Man narrowly escapes death, accused of stealing 19 fowls, a dog
A 42-year-old man, Kwabena Otoo, narrowly escaped death on the dawn of Monday when residents of Assin Adubiase lynched him, having been accused of stealing 19 fowls and a dog.
“I heard the commotion from my house,” said a resident who wished to remain anonymous. “By the time I reached the scene, there was already a crowd surrounding him. His pleas for mercy were drowned by angry voices.”
Otoo, bleeding profusely and severely injured, might have lost his life if not for a timely distress call to the Assin Fosu Divisional Police Command.
Officers arrived around 4am, pushing through the mob to rescue the battered man.
“We found him in critical condition,” shared one responding officer. “Every minute counted in getting him medical attention.”
Now recovering at the Assin Fosu Polyclinic, Otoo suffered physical wounds but also faces uncertain future as investigations continue.
Medical staff report indicated that he suffered multiple injuries requiring immediate treatment.
Community members claim Otoo’s contradictory answers during questioning triggered their suspicions and subsequent assault.
One witness explained that, “people here have lost too much to thieves… frustration has been building for months.”
The Police have confirmed Otoo is from neighbouring Assin Odumase and are calling for anyone missing fowls or a dog to come forward as part of their investigation.
“This could have ended in tragedy,” warned a police spokesperson. “We understand community frustrations, but mob justice is never the answer. We urge citizens to report crimes rather than taking matters into their own hands.”
From Kingsley E. Hope, Kumasi
News
Swallowed by the Sea! …Keta’s coastal lines, landmarks, efforts to preserve heritage
The Atlantic Ocean is no longer a distant blue horizon for the people of Keta.
It now circles around their doorsteps, uninvited, unrelenting, pulling down walls and other structures, erasing memories, and threatening lives.
Hovering precariously between the restless sea and the Keta Lagoon, this once-thriving coastal town is slowly being obliterated.
Salt water has become both a physical and metaphorical threat, dissolving the town’s past as fast as it claims its future.
Madam Aku Atitso, 62, lives in a crumbling former Prisons Service quarters – one of the few structures still standing on the eroded stretch of Queen Street.
She sits quietly at the entrance, preparing a modest breakfast for herself and her granddaughter.
The air is thick with salt and silence. “The sea took everything,” she says softly. “My husband’s nets, our mattress, our memories all gone overnight.” Her voice trembles. “This place too is dying. But it’s the last place with a roof over my head.”
A few metres away, Aunty Esinam, 79, watches the sea from a low stool beside a wooden shelter. Her eyes do not blink. “That spot,” she points, “used to be someone’s living room, a whole family lived there”.
It’s not just homes that are vanishing. Landmarks that anchored Keta’s cultural identity are disappearing one after another. The once-imposing Fort Prinzenstein, a haunting relic of the transatlantic slave trade is now more of a ruin than a monument.
the encroaching waters along Keta’s
coast.
encroaching waters along Keta’s coast
The colonial-era Bremen factory, the old cinema where generations of children once laughed at flickering black-and-white films is also gone.
Queen Street, once the town’s bustling backbone, is now a watery corridor choked with debris.
Standing atop a section of the sea defence wall, 69-year-old retired teacher Efo Kwasi Agbeko surveys what remains.
“The first police station is mostly gone,” he says, gesturing part of the building stuck in the sea sand, only ruins and a few rooms remain.
“This town is fighting, but the sea is winning,” he said.
Even the Cape St. Paul Lighthouse, Keta’s historic sentinel, leans perilously toward the water, and fishermen say holes in the shore are opening more frequently, sometimes every week.
That leaves a thick cloud of uncertainty hanging around the historic town of Keta.
Once upon a time, it was a vibrant town noted for business but currently left with ruins with a few of the residents watching in awe the sea’s devastation.
From: Geoffrey Kwame Buta, Keta, Volta Region
News
Ghanaians climax Easter with fun-filled activities
Christians around the world and other faith based groups last Monday climaxed the Easter celebration with a number of fun-filled outdoor and indoor activities.
With streets empty, fun seekers stormed church premises where picnics were held while others partied in many ways.
Others spent the day at the various beaches and music and film shows occupying the others.
velleyball competition
at the Laboma Beach
Church in Tema Community 8 engaged
in a number of activities including the
popular draught competition
At the churches, participants engaged in bible reading, football, volleyball, playing cards, table tennis, horse racing, bouncing castles, swimming and oware.
one of the picnic venues
Others played ludo, tag of war, lime and spoon, draught, music competitions among others.
The Spectator captured some of the exciting scenes around Accra-Tema for the benefit of readers.
Story & pictures by Victor A. Buxton
