The Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) has begun monitoring the activities of individuals campaigning for the independence of the Volta Region. The Independent said the BNI has intensified its surveillance in the region after it first published reports on the activities of certain individuals who were going about in the region preaching and clamouring for the separation of the region. But BNI sources disclosed that they have been on the ground way before the publications. The Independent recently reported on the activities of a group calling itself the Homeland Study Group Foundation (HSGF), which has appointed itself to spearhead campaigns for the separation of the Volta Region from Ghana. The group, according to the Independent, has been organising public fora across the region on the need for natives of the Volta Region to support their move for independence. According to the Public Relations Secretary of the HSGF, Captain Christopher Brooks, they had spoken to about one million Voltarians of 18 years and above on this issue. The Interior Minister, Albert Kan Dapaah, has described the action of the Volta Separatists as an act of subversion. Other Voltarians have condemned the move by the Homeland Study Group Foundation. The Member of Parliament (MP) for Central Tongu Constituency, Joe Gidisu, has said the arguments by the Group are "neither here nor there." He said the action of the HSGF will have serious economic implications for the Volta Region and even Ghana. The HSGF has been arguing that the plebiscite of May 9, 1956 by the Volta Region which integrated the region into Ghana was flawed. The group is thus contesting the validity of the plebiscite, and is therefore calling on the Queen of England, the UN Secretary-General and a tall list of individuals who matter in international politics to look into the plebiscite and overturn it. Speaking on Joy FM's Super Morning Show, the Executive Director of the West African Network for Peace Building (WANEP), Emmanuel Bombande, said the Volta Region, just like all the other regions of the country, came from different backgrounds and experiences to form Ghana. He said, each of the "different regions of Ghana have very' good reasons why they can stand on their own," and so could easily make the argument. Mr. Bombande therefore said the arguments of the group should not be dismissed outright. Rather we should listen to the HSGF, engage them in a rationale discussion and convince them that their action does not help the cause of national development. Mr. Bombande said, the HSGF should also refrain from introducing exclusionist tendencies into the country, since that does not augur well for national development. He also doubted whether the HSGF has the capacity to threaten the peace of the country. Majority of contributors to radio discussions of the subject have condemned the campaign for the Volta Region's independence, with some referring to it severally as a selfish move.