3 Dead, many injured in clash during Teshie Homowo

Three persons have been confirmed dead and several others injured after a violent clash during the sprinkling of kpokpoi to mark the 2025 Homowo celebrations in Teshie.

The incident occurred last Tuesday at the Chief’s Palace in Lenshie, near the Manjaanor Shrine, when two rival factions clashed.

The deceased have been identified as Patrick Marmah Martey, 27; Christopher Osekre Adjetey, 29, and Eddie Blessing (age not disclosed).

The Teshie Police District Commander, Chief Superintendent Vincent Adotey, providing details to the Daily Graphic yesterday, said the violence broke out around 1:30 p.m. when the Paramount Chief, Gbetsorlor Nii Akonfra III, and his entourage were returning to the palace after performing the traditional kpokpoi sprinkling rites at various locations in the town.

According to him, after the Paramount Chief and his elders retired into the palace, some of their supporters remained outside.

Shortly after, the Atofoatse, Nii Dzata, and his followers also arrived at the palace to perform their own sprinkling, but were vehemently prevented by supporters of the Paramount Chief.

This led to chaos involving the hurling of stones and bottles, and eventually, the firing of gunshots.

Chief Superintendent Adotey explained that, before the sacred ritual, a Municipal Security Committee meeting had agreed that chiefs of the various clans within the Teshie enclave should restrict the sprinkling of kpokpoi to their respective clan houses to prevent confrontation, given past incidents.

However, Atofoatse Nii Dzata defied the directive, arguing that there was a deity at the Palace, known as Naa Yoomo, to whom he was duty-bound to offer the kpokpoi. This sparked a confrontation between his supporters and those of the Paramount Chief, culminating in an exchange of gunfire.

"Although calm was restored hours later, several people were injured, with those in critical conditions rushed to the LEKMA Hospital and the Family Health Hospital," he said.

"Later, I received a call from the Administrator of the Lekma Hospital that families of some of the victims were disturbing the treatment process, so I, together with the District Crime Officer, ASP Kofi Attimbiri, and Divisional Crime Officer, Supt. Kartey Otumi went there to disperse the crowd,” he added.

"We proceeded to the emergency ward to see the patients receiving treatments. One of the victims, who was in a critical condition and was rushed to the theatre for surgery, passed on.
"Later in the day, we had information that two of the victims at the Family Health Hospital had also died," he stated.

Early morning clashes

Superintendent Adotey revealed that as early as 6 a.m. on August 26, youth groups had taken to the streets singing, jogging and dancing—a vibrant activity locally known as kpashimor, which is a hallmark of the Teshie Homowo festival.

During this period, the police received reports of a clash between two rival groups, known as Ofite and 50 Cent, who encountered each other while jogging from opposite ends of the town.

The incident occurred outside the purview of the police.

“They threw stones and bottles, but we quickly managed to contain the situation. After peace was restored, the kpokpoi sprinkling began in the afternoon, which unfortunately led to the later confrontation,” he stated.

Danger looms

Superintendent Adotey revealed that intelligence reports suggested that some factions are planning retaliatory attacks.

In response, the Municipal Security Committee is considering placing an injunction on all remaining public events associated with the festival to prevent further violence.

“We are receiving signals of possible reprisal attacks, so we are moving to place an injunction on the continuation of public events,” he stated.

“However, if the directive is defied, we may be forced to deploy security personnel to provide protection and avert any potential disaster,” he concluded.

Call for Calm

Meanwhile, the Assembly Member for the Okesekor Electoral Area at Teshie, Kabu Saint, has called for calm among all factions, assuring the public that the law would take its course and those responsible would be held accountable.

He noted that some Assembly Members had already visited the bereaved families to offer their condolences.

The entire celebration is expected to end on Saturday, September 6.