The Tongu Council of Chiefs have convened a stakeholder engagement with security agencies and relevant actors at Fievie Dugame in the South Tongu District of the Volta Region. The meeting aimed to address the rate of security threats, including murder cases, cyber fraud, and other social vices, which was putting residents in a state of fear. Zikpitorga Awuku Doe Atakli, the Paramount Stool Father of the Fievie Traditional Area, chaired the engagement on behalf of Togbe Nakakpo Dugbaza VIII, the President of the Tongu Chiefs Council. He expressed his deep concern about the escalating crime rate, citing numerous murder cases and social vices that threatened the peace and security of the district. Zikpitorga Awuku cited issues where some unknown men stormed the residence of the district magistrate and bolted away with valuable items about a year ago. He noted that many residents were murdered in cold blood a few years past and the same incidents were occurring in the year too. 'Our Judges can no longer sl eep in their residence. They are afraid. Even businessmen and women, farmers and little children were robbed and some were murdered. We can't live with this anymore,' he lamented. This situation he said would deter the progress of South Tongu. He, therefore, on behalf of the Chiefs Council, charged the security agencies to act immediately to bring peace to the district. He also mentioned that if the issues of crime were not tackled, it would halt prominent investors from coming into the district and their socioeconomic growth would be compromised. He pledged the full support of the Tongu Chiefs Council to assist in fighting the situation. Nanega Mariama Fomedigbe II, the Queen Mother of Fievie Dugame, reiterated the need for in-depth investigations into the murder cases to ensure that all perpetrators were apprehended. She urged the security agencies to work diligently to ensure that peace reigned in South Tongu. Superintendent of Police, Mr. Andam Francis Okyere, the Sogakope Police Commander, assured that the security agencies were committed to combating the rising crime incidents. He noted that various arrests and prosecutions had been done and they would scale up their operations to clamp down the crime rate. Officers from the National Investigation Bureau, Ghana Ambulance Service, Ghana National Service and the Ghana Immigration Service unanimously assured the Tongu Chiefs Council that their issues were noted and that all the security agencies would discuss further at a District Security Council (DISEC) meeting to bolster extensive measures to combat the scaling crime rate in the district. However, the stakeholders resolved to work together to enhance security presence and patrols in the district. They also pledged to improve intelligence gathering and sharing to support community policing initiatives. Source: Ghana News Agency