The Sanneh Institute and some members of the Bawku Traditional area have petitioned President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo to order the closure of a so-called healing centre in Widana set up for the purpose of “identifying and exorcising” alleged witches.
The centre is said to be established by a witch doctor, Rufai Sumaila and his father in Pulmakuom in the Pusiga District of Bawku.
“At the base which is near the Ghana/Togo border post at Widana, the self-styled witchdoctors claim to use sachet water for identifying“witches” and for healing.
“When a sick person goes for healing, they tell them their condition is caused by a family member who has bewitched them,” the petition said.
The petition said several attempts to get both Rufasa Sumaila and his father arrested have not been successful.
It hence called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to intervene and ensure that the centre is closed.
“All attempts on the ground to get Rufai and his father to stop the practice have proved futile. It is against this background that The Sanneh Institute, with the support of the undersigned leading personalities from the area, is petitioning your good offices for the base to be shut down.”
This petition follows the lynching of Akua Denteh, a 90-year-old woman, who was accused of being a witch at Kafaba in the Savannah Region.
