The Zongo Chief of Hwidiem in the Ahafo Region, Mohammed Bashiru, has given a first-hand account of how his vehicle was vandalised during a violent confrontation between angry youth and a National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) team at the Hwidiem Police Station over the weekend.

Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Alhaji Bashiru described the events as “chaotic and dangerous,” recalling how swift intervention by community leaders and the police helped prevent bloodshed.

According to him, he was on his farm when the Member of Parliament for Asutifi North, Ebenezer Addo, called to inform him of the tense situation involving the NAIMOS team led by Colonel Dominic Buah.

“When I arrived on a motorbike, the situation was indeed bad,” Alhaji Bashiru recounted. “We wanted to remove the soldiers from the police station because the youth had surrounded the place and were becoming uncontrollable.”

He noted that many of the young people involved were unaware of what had triggered the unrest, joining in the chaos out of curiosity.

“A lot of the youth didn’t even know what was happening. Some were just following the crowd. The mature ones who understood the matter were rather helping the police to restore calm,” he explained.

The Zongo Chief said that after assessing the situation, the Asutifi North MP advised evacuating the soldiers for their safety.

“The MP said the police vehicle wasn’t safe, so he appealed to me to bring my Toyota Sequoia 4×4 to transport the soldiers because we believed no one would dare touch it,” Alhaji Bashiru said.

However, moments after his vehicle arrived, part of the irate mob attacked and smashed its rear windscreen, mistaking it for a military vehicle.

“Those who vandalised my car were not part of the group that understood the issue. One young man even confessed he joined the crowd just because he heard people shouting,” he revealed.

Despite the damage, Alhaji Bashiru said his priority was ensuring the safety of the soldiers and preventing the situation from escalating further.

He praised the military officers for their restraint and professionalism, noting that they could have retaliated but chose to remain calm under pressure.

“The soldiers are government officials working on behalf of the state. Once they wear the uniform, we must accord them respect,” he said. “I commend them because if they wanted to escape by force, they could have done so, but they stayed calm until we moved them to safety.”

The NAIMOS team, which had earlier arrested two suspected illegal miners and seized vehicles and weapons at a nearby mining site, was later rescued under police escort and transported safely to the Newmont Kenyasi site.

Police in Hwidiem have since confirmed that calm has been restored, though investigations into the vandalism and attempted mob assault on the taskforce continue.