Member of Parliament for South Dayi, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, says there should be harsh consequences for military personnel engaged in extra-judicial killings in Bawku.

His comment follows the fatal shooting of three young men from Bawku after they were apprehended and assaulted by military men.

According to eyewitnesses, the young men had done nothing to provoke the attack from the military.

The incident has resulted in heightened tension in the area.

Commenting on the situation on JoyNews’ Newsfile, Mr. Dafeamekpor stated that the fact that there are still incidents of gun violence in Bawku despite the heavy militarization of the area means some people are not performing their duties as expected.

“We have a national security strategy document. If you read it, Bawku features in it prominently. They are the strategies drawn by the national security apparatus to deal with the problem.

“So I am surprised that even with all the strategies outlined in the document dealing with the issues, we still have this problem.

“Why? Because there are no consequences arising when people commit crimes or offences or commit acts that ought to be punished. These are extra-judicial killings,” he said.

He added that the failure to punish rogue officials and implement harsh consequences on those guilty of carrying out extra-judicial killings may turn the crisis area into a full-blown war zone.

“When things like this happen, there must be consequences. People must be punished. If we don’t punish, we’ll create an artificial war and commit murder and that for me is what I suspect is happening, create a conflict situation and kill your opponent in the name of conflict,” he said.