Members of the group being escorted after their arrest.
Eight persons believed to be the leaders of a Volta separatist group – Homeland Study Group Foundation – have been arrested by the Police.
The group has over the years been championing the secession of the Volta Region from Ghana to form what they call Western Togoland.
They claim the continuous stay of the Volta Region under Ghana is illegal.
The eight were picked up by a combined military and police force on Sunday evening in Ho where they were said to be holing a secret meeting about their activities.
The suspects, DGN Online gathered, were airlifted to Accra in a helicopter.
A statement issued by the police indicated that the eight were arrested “in the course of a meeting to finalize arrangements to declare independent Western Togoland on 9th May, 2019.”
The statement noted that the intelligence agencies have gathered sufficient evidence including a constitution, national emblem and anthem “prepared by these eight persons and others for their supposed country.”
“Activities of the group also include illegally recruiting and training young people in a ‘militia style’ for them to form the core of their supposed country’s armed forces and police force”, the statement disclosed.
It indicated that all persons found culpable of wrong doing would be dealt with in accordance with the law.
It called on the public to volunteer information on the group, its leaders and members to the police.
It would be recalled that three members of the Volta secessionist group, were arrested on March 7, 2017 after they had held an event in Ho to mark Ghana’s 60th independence anniversary.
At that event, the group made known its intention to declare the Volta Region and parts of Northern and Upper East Regions an independent state with the name, Western Togoland – a territory which existed prior to Ghana’s independence.
Some of the group members were also spotted wearing T-shirts with the inscription, ‘9th May Is Our Day’ at the top and ‘A Citizen Of Western Togoland’ at the base of the shirt.
Subsequently, the group’s founder, Charles Kormi Kudjordji, with two others – Martin Asiamah Agbenu, and Divine Odonkor – were arraigned before the Ho high court and charged together with four others (in absentia) for treason felony and conspiracy to commit same.
The three were later granted a GH¢50,000 bail each with two sureties to be justified.
The AG later filed a motion to drop the charges and be substituted with a lesser charge since their activities did not warrant the charges levelled against them.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak