Muntaka: Gov't preparing to convene national conference on chieftaincy disputes fueling 190 conflict hotspots in Ghana
The Minister for the Interior, Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka, has said the government was preparing to convene a national conference on chieftaincy disputes and also step up efforts to seize illegal arms.
This is because chieftaincy disputes are the largest driver of violent conflicts in Ghana.
Speaking in a radio interview with Joy FM Thursday morning [September 4, 2025], Mr Muntaka said Ghana had about 338 conflict hotspots, with 190 of them linked directly to chieftaincy.
“When you go, even the secondary one, like land disputes, in the long run, it brings you back to chieftaincy. So, if we are not careful, chieftaincy will become a big hell for us,” he said.
He stressed the need for reform, stating: “The time has come for us to call a national conference on chieftaincy in our country.”
On the recent Gbiniyiri clashes in the Savannah Region, the Minister confirmed that thousands had fled across the border. “We can confirm that about 13,000 individuals are in Côte d’Ivoire,” he said, adding: “The exact number confirmed by the authorities in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire is 13,253. Yes, our displaced persons across are not more than 100,000.”
Mr Muntaka warned that the conflict risked worsening food shortages. “Many of them left their farms. If we don’t resolve this quickly, we are going to lead to a lot of food insecurity in that area,” he said.
On efforts to restore peace, the Minister explained: “This morning, the delegation of the Gonjaland leadership with the peace council [is meeting] the Yagbonwura. Hopefully by tomorrow or at least by Monday, we are setting up a committee to investigate all this. We may be able to announce all the displaced persons to return to their homes.” He added that the clashes began on August 24.
Providing an update on security deployments, Mr Muntaka said more than 700 personnel had been sent to the area. “We have over 700 men, both military and police in that area. I assure you that it’s calm now, it’s almost normal. We’ve not had even a shooting incident. Yes, we have no casualty there,” he said.
He later confirmed that 31 lives had been lost. “On record, what we have is 31. I can tell you specifically, we’ve lost 31 of our compatriots,” he added.
Turning to narcotics, the Minister revealed that a large quantity of drugs had recently been destroyed.
“On the 22nd, we destroyed almost GH¢12 million worth of drugs. Our biggest weak link is the judiciary, they just keep adjourning. I’m working on it with the Chief Justice, whether we’ll be able to create a special court for narcotics, galamsey,” he explained. He also disclosed that “as we are now speaking, we have over 1,200 young guys that we have to send for rehabilitation.”
Mr Muntaka also warned of strict measures against illegal arms. “Currently, one of the biggest challenge that we have is the proliferation of arms in our country.
If you don’t [surrender them], then we will have massive searches. We are seizing every arm that we see. Once you display it at a wedding or any ceremony, we will seize this and we will also arrest you. We will also try to revoke your licence and ask everybody to re-register. I’m yet to go to cabinet,” he said.
