AND THE MINISTER WEPT (1b)

THE Northern Regional Minister, Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idris, made an emotional appeal for peace yesterday when he came face to face with the grim realities of the conflict at Gushiegu and then burst into tears.
Touched by the plight of wailing women and grief-stricken children in the conflict area the minister, while wiping tears from his eyes with a white handkerchief, said “we should all resolve and say never again”.
The aftermath of the weekend violence presented a sorrowful spectacle as the women and children recounted their experiences to the minister when he led members of the Regional Security Council (REGSEC) to assess the extent of damage.
Most of them had nowhere to sleep and nothing to eat because, according to them, all their food stocks had been burnt during the weekend carnage.
“My brothers and sisters are currently hiding in the bush out of fear for their lives, while others are fleeing the town; look, I have only GH¢34 to feed a family of seven and my shop has been burnt down,” one of them told the Daily Graphic.
The violence left in its trail deaths, loss of property, fear, agony and uncertainties of the future.
It claimed three lives, one of whom was an 80-year-old sub-chief, Nangol Lana Abukari Ziblim. The other deceased are Ayuba Abdulai, 28, and a 24-year-old man whose body is yet to be identified.
As the women wailed and shed tears, they also prayed to God “Nawuni” to expose the perpetrators of the murders and arson that had caused them so much pain.
The victims were standing helplessly looking at what was left in their smoky houses and compounds that had been targets of arson in the mayhem.
Lack of foodstuff and money likely to result in hunger, loss of lives of beloved ones, fear of the unknown, and grief, stared the women and children in the face.
A good number of the victims were spotted by the Daily Graphic on the link road between Yendi and Gushegu in a dilemma as to where to go.
Hundreds of people in the area have been displaced as 23 houses were burnt down but there are indications that the number of houses destroyed could be more.
The incident occurred between Sunday and Monday.
It was a spillover from an earlier clash between the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) at Kpatinga near Gushegu last Sunday.