Former President Jerry John Rawlings has warned of grave consequences if the “cruel” and “brutal” murder of Captain Maxwell Adama Mahama is not dealt with decisively.

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“The loss of that captain has sent a shock wave throughout the country. I sincerely hope that this will serve as a wakeup call to all of us, to government, to the law enforcement agencies, the courts, to wake up to our duties and responsibilities in order to prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future,” he said.

“This is a very uncivilized behavior. The early we find a way to contain this irresponsibility, the cruelty, the better it will be for all of us,” he added.

He posited that had the government dealt with other lawless behaviors in the past, the situation were people act with impunity would had been nipped in the bud.

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“Had we reacted appropriately as a government, there is no doubt in my mind that this kind of brutal cruel behaviour could have gone on for this long," he said.

“This did not start today, it started a few years ago. I think we all know where we will be heading this time if we do not crack the whip,” he said.