The Northern Regional Minister, Shani Alhassan Saibu, has hailed the role of the Chief of Lamashegu, Naa Ziblim Abdulai, in calming tensions in the area following a clash between some residents and police.
According to the Minister, a police officer almost lost his life during the incident.
“But for the intervention of the chief, the police officer would have been lynched,” Mr. Saibu said to Citi News.
According to reports, a 24-year-old man was chased and shot by a police officer after he ignored instruction from officers.
The incident angered youth in the area, who burned tyres in protest of the action of the officers.
But amid the anger, the chief was able to calm the angry residents.
“It was on the insistence of the chief that this was an accident and nobody needed to do anything to further escalate the situation.”
“It was him who called for police reinforcement and even rescued the police officer,” Mr. Saibu added.
The lack of restraint from police has been called into question following the incident.
Six police officers have been interdicted following the violence that left some persons wounded and one person dead.
Police in a statement said a team of investigators had been dispatched to the area, led by the Deputy Director-General of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
Personnel from the Police Professional Standards Bureau have also been detailed alongside the CID team to look at professional standard-related issues of the incident.
