The Tema Traditional Council (TTC) has called for calm among residents and indigenes of Tema Newtown after fear and panic held sway over unexplained deaths in the community.
Thousands of residents from Monday, have rushed to the beach daily to take a bath in the sea on the instructions of a traditional priest to fortify themselves against curses invoked on the town by ritualists.
The residents paid one Ghana Cedi each to the purification team led by the said traditional priest before rituals were performed on behalf of the individual.
The death of nine persons under “mysterious circumstances” within 10 days led to mass hysteria paving the way for the traditional priest’s antidote of a sea dip among other rituals.
Nii Armah Somponu II, Tema Shipi, reacting to the event, called for calm among residents as according to him, the deaths could be coincidental, medical or spiritual.
Nii Somponu added that the TTC had contacted and invited the Tema Metropolitan Health Directorate to investigate the cause of the deaths.
He noted that the Council could not attribute the death to a curse or any other thing supernatural until the investigations were completed.
He stressed that TTC had not sanctioned the spiritual bath in the sea nor the payment of money for the reversal of the alleged curse.
According to him, one of the deceased was stabbed, another from sickness, one other was pelted while another died out of shock when he was informed of his child’s death.
He cautioned the media against publishing such things without verifying from the Council, as that created fear and panic among residents.
Tema Metropolitan Chief Executive, Felix Mensah Nii Annang-La accompanied by Assembly Members, officials of the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), Police among others, visited the Council to discuss the issues and commiserate with the bereaved.
Mr. Annang-La apologized to the TTC on behalf of the Assembly Member for the Habour Electoral area, Eric Twumesi, for publicizing the alleged spiritual bath directions without enquiring from the Council.
He assured residents that the health officials were in community to investigate the cause of deaths.
