The Chief Executive (CE) of Forestry Commission (FC) Mr. John Allotey, has paid a visit to Mr. John Baba Konlan, a staff of the Rapid Response Unit (RRU), who was shot by unidentified illegal miners in the Cape 3 Points Forest Reserve, at the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) in Accra.
The CE was accompanied by Mr. Samuel Akonnor Darko, the Coordinator of the RRU; Mr. Alexander Asum, Coordinator of the National Timber Monitoring Team and some staff of the RRU. Present at the Medical Centre were some family members of Mr. Konlan.
Addressing the family members, the CE gave a firm assurance that FC will do all it can to make sure Mr. Konlan is back on his feet. He said all medical expenses will be borne by the Commission as it appreciates the dedicated service that members of the RRU are providing for the entire country. “The RRU is the lifeline of the Commission therefore, anything that affects even a strand of their hairs affects the Commission and the nation as a whole”, he said.
The family members of Mr. Konlan expressed great appreciation for the Chief Executive’s kind gesture which they described as “a show of love, compassion, good leadership and kindness”. They asked for God’s blessings for the CE and his team for their show of total commitment towards the full recovery of their kinsman.
Mr. Konlan was shot by suspected illegal miners in the Cape 3 Points Forest Reserve in the Western Region, when he in the company of his colleagues, went to the Reserve to effect the arrest of suspected illegal miners.
The Team called off the exercise and took Mr. Konlan to the Effia Nkwanta Government Hospital, from where he was transferred to the Cape Coast Regional Hospital for further treatment. He was subsequently referred to the University of Ghana Medical Centre, where he was admitted. He has since been discharged and is to report to the Centre for a review.
A CT Scan carried out on Mr. Konlan indicated among others that “Non-contrast serial axial CT scan of the head with bone windows shows multiple metallic bullets, one located in the left temporo-parietal went through the bone into the brain from the left temporal and parietal to the left occipital and into the right lobes”.
“There are other bullets that did not enter the brain or fractured any bone; 2 are left in the left frontal scalp, one in the left parietal at the vertex, multiple lodged close to the angle of the left mandible and one in the soft tissue of the right neck”.
The case has been reported to the Takoradi Central Police Station and no arrest has been made yet.