A violent clash between two youth groups in the Tamale metropolis erupted over a piece of land where secondhand cloth dealers have been operating in the Tamale central market.
This land has yet to be developed due to concerns raised by utility companies regarding its allocation to a private developer, which stalled the development process in 2022/2023, despite the area being fenced. Since then, the plot has been utilized by secondhand cloth vendors, hawkers, and other traders.
On January 27, 2025, a group of traders affiliated with the National Democratic Congress (NDC) approached a representative of the Gulkpenaa palace, seeking permission to fully access the surrounding land. Their request resulted in the removal of the zinc fencing that enclosed the disputed area.
In response, the brother of the private developer, upset by this turn of events, mobilized friends linked to the AI-Qaeda youth group in Tamale to confront the traders and Gulkpenaa palace supporters. A violent exchange of gunfire ensued, leaving three traders with gunshot wounds to their legs and two of the attackers injured in their arms.
The shooting incident disrupted trading activities in the market and along the streets for over an hour. Military personnel were deployed to restore order, bringing calm back to the Tamale central market. During a visit to the scene, Northern Regional Police Commander DCOP Samuel Winful advised the secondhand cloth dealers to refrain from trading in the disputed area until the matter is resolved with the local assembly and regional administration.
Inusah Fuseini, known as the NDC “Chinese man,” spoke with Noah Nash from GHOne TV. He recounted that the assault on a palace representative by the AI-Qaeda youth group sparked the exchange of gunfire within the market.
Brief Facts
The land in question was sold to a private developer through a public-private partnership (PPP) agreement by the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly during the 2022/2023 period, as part of a project aimed at redesigning and beautifying the Tamale overpass in 2023. The agreement stipulated that the developer would construct a two-story building for stores on the site. Although the first phase of the project was completed, the second phase faced significant criticism from displaced traders.
During discussions with utility providers, an assembly work department committee found that the land was unsuitable for development due to the presence of a fire hydrant, fiber optic cables, and underground cables from the Volta River Authority (VRA). This revelation hindered the progress of the redevelopment project.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Noah Nash Hoenyefia
