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| Gallons containing petrol |
The Police in Kpedze with
support from the Ho-west District Security Council (DISEC) in the Volta region,
last Monday evening impounded over 1,675 litres of petrol suspected to be
packaged for smuggling to neighbouring Togo.
The fuel which was concealed
in 50 yellow jerrycans popularly called ‘Kufour gallon’ and a drum were found hidden
in a building located on the premises of a local Allied Oil filling Station in the area.
According to the Kpedze
District Police Commander ASP, Sebastian Folivia, the police last Friday (July 11,
2014), upon a tip off spotted some motorbikes with yellow gallons suspected
to contain fuel and after a hot chase, they entered the escaped into Togo.
However investigations that
evening, according to ASP Folivia pointed to the Allied Oil filling Station as
the source of supply.
It was also revealed that, the
filling station received over 20,900 litres of petrol last Friday (July 11,
2014), but as of last Monday evening, a substantial quantity of over 7,200
litres was filled into containers allegedly waiting for smuggling.
A female sales attendant at
the filling station, Veronica has since been picked up to assist the police in investigations.
Smuggling of fuel and Cocoa
using ‘Okada’ has become rampart in the area because of its proximity to
neighbouring Togo but Mr. Samuel Ewoade, Ho-West District Chief executive said
the District Security Council has intensified its surveillance in order to
combat the menace.
The Volta Regional Minister
Helen Ntoso who was in the area on Tuesday to access the situation and inspect
the exhibits expressed disgust about the increase in smuggling activities in
the region which she said is adversely affecting the economy of the country. She
described the perpetrators as nation wreckers and called on all Ghanaians to
help bring them to book.
Madam Ntoso announced that,
the Regional Security Council will soon form an Anti-Smuggling Task Force to clampdown
on the illegal activity in the region.
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| the filling station |
In May this year, the Ketu-South
District Security Council also sent an SOS message to the regional Security
Council to intervene in the increasing smuggling activities in the area, which
has overwhelmed the limited custom officials at the borders.
In recent times there has
been an upsurge in the number of new fuel filling stations springing up along
the Ho-Aflao highway, which observers believe may only increase the rate of
smuggling of petroleum product along the Ghana-Togo border.
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