An article by Ps Alex Kojo Adjani ( PENSA Traveling Secretary For Upper Volta Sector.
Ritual killing as defined by the Meriam Webster Online Dictionary is the sacrificial slaying of a human as a propitiatory offering to a deity. It occurs when a person is murdered and parts of the body are sacrificed, or used for muti (medicine) to purge a community of evil or to confer special privileges on the murderers. It involves the kidnapping of human beings for the practice of ritual sacrifice with the belief that the sacrifices provide or generate money, and bring fame, favor, success, power, and protection for the perpetrators. Many ritual murders involve the idea of human sacrifice, usually for religious reasons. Besides, ritual killings have involved teenage perpetrators drawn into satanic cults. Animal or human sacrifice is usually advocated by a traditional healer or carried out by a person who is seeking supernatural powers or spiritual help. Some of the objects of sacrifice for this ritual are whole or severed parts of a human being, such as the head, genitals, breasts, eyes, intestine, arms, and legs as well as exhumed dead body or its severed parts.
The activity of ritual killing is a contributing factor to the accelerated threat of kidnapping in Ghana. In the later part of the 20th century (the 90s) and early 2000s, several people were murdered of which a significant majority were women, particularly at Mataheko and its environs in Accra. The era struck fear in citizens as the bodies of the women were found stripped, body parts removed, and syringes scattered at the crime scene. Besides, the Guardian, a Ghanaian Newspaper reported approximately 34 women being killed at the time and this led to a demonstration led by former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings after police were unable to clamp down on the crime. According to research, kidnapping has, of late, become endemic in Ghanaian society, especially in Sekondi Takoradi, Kumasi, and Accra. In the year 2019, there were 13 reported cases of kidnapping and abduction of women and girls. Over the last three decades, there have been hundreds of mutilated bodies of children and women, especially, found at various locations in the country with suspicions of rituals. The kidnapping process generally involves victims that are charmed and made unconscious by the abductors at the point of seizure. Available data has shown that most victims die rather than survive their experience after being abducted for ritual while others turn mad, deformed, and poor.
The phenomenon of kidnapping for ritual has a strong linkage with religion and can be better understood as an article of faith as it is deeply rooted in the belief that magical potions prepared with human heads, breasts, tongues, eyes, and genitals can enhance one’s political and financial fortunes, and protect against all forms of dangers.
There is therefore a need for alertness, a call to order, and a refurbishment of security institutions in the country. The following are some suggested precautionary measures to alleviate the menace of ritual killing in the country.
a.Avoid walking in secluded places alone and after dusk.
b.Limit or stop routine movements: it is provident to apply more than one route to work and back home. Driving or walking through the same route will make it easy for suspecting abductors to gather information about you and can make it easy for them to track you down when they are ready to strike.
c.Maintain a moderate lifestyle: To avoid being kidnapped, you should check your lifestyle. Living loud or a luxurious life can be a threat to you. It is important to do things in moderation.
d. It is important to keep emergency numbers like the police shortcode so that you can quickly call whenever you sense you are being monitored by kidnappers or you notice anything strange in your environment.
e.Always attract the attention of people whenever you notice a threat.
f.Keep your cell phone handy at all times. It can be of great help when there is a sense of a kidnap.
g.Let someone (a relative or a trusted friend) know where you’re going.
h.Do not accept rides from strangers.
In addition to the above precautionary measures, there is a need for the government to show commitment to poverty eradication through the creation of employment opportunities and the refurbishment of human security agents like the Ghana police on the menace of kidnapping.
Written by Alex Kojo Adjani – Ps
PENSA Traveling Secretary for Upper Volta & Oti Sector.
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