Fear of terrorism spreads in Paga, Upper East

Residents in Paga in the Upper East Region are living in fear following a terrorist attack in neighbouring

A resident who spoke to Radio Ghana on the fear of a possible terror attack in Paga said the former Interior Minister under the Mahama administration, James Agalga, promised to mount surveillance cameras on the Paga-Burkina Faso border to monitor the movements of people.

He challenged the Akufo-Addo administration to mount the surveillance equipment to make residents feel safe.

He said: “Last year, when the former deputy minister of Interior, James Agalga who is also the MP for Bulsa North came to Upper East during the ‘Government for the People Forum.’ He promised that the government will mount surveillance equipment at our borders just to ensure we all safe from a possible terrorist attack.

“I don’t know what has become of that promise. I think this just the best opportunity for this government to see to it that those surveillance equipment are installed so that we’ll know who is entering Ghana and who is leaving Ghana.

“And we can all feel safe to do our businesses.

Gunmen last Sunday opened fire on customers seated outside a Turkish restaurant in Burkina Faso’s capital, Ouagadougou.

Burkina Faso, a landlocked nation bordering Ghana, Mali and Niger, has seen a string of attacks claimed by jihadist groups in recent years.

In December 2016 a dozen soldiers were killed in an assault on their base in the north of the country. And in October that year, there was an attack that killed four troops and two civilians.

The worst attack was an assault on a hotel and cafe in central Ouagadougou in January 2016 that killed 30 people including several foreigners.

Meanwhile, the District Chief Executive of Paga, Clement Dandori, has assured residents of maximum security, urging them to go about their normal business.

“Burkina Faso is our closeness neighbour so whatever happens there affect us here.

“It is our prayer that Burkina Faso will be able to contain the situation before it becomes a West African issue.

“Burkina Faso is surrounded by so many West African countries,” he said.

“But for us around Ghana, we have every confidence in our Minister for National Security and apparatus that they can keep the situation under control.

“We are ok, there is no cause for alarm,” he assured.