Papavi’s death should not be viewed as end of Western Togoland separatists – Security analyst warns

• Charles Kormi Kudjordji was the leader of a separatist group

• Papavi was arrested in 2019 and charged with treason

• Adam believes his death will not see the end for calls of an independent “Western Togoland”

Ghanaian security analyst, Adam Bonaa has asked the country’s National Security Ministry and other related security agencies to continue

Read full articleto monitor the activities of separatists in the country following the death of their leader.

The leader and founder of the Homeland Study Group Foundation (HSGF), Charles Kormi Kudjordji, popularly known as Papavi was reported dead on Friday, October 15, 2021.

Prior to his death, the 87-year-old was standing was on the police wanted list for leading a secessionist group that was championing the separation of the “Western Togoland” from Ghana.

Speaking on his death in an interview with GhanaWeb, Adam Bonaa noted that any interpretation of Papavi’s death to mean the end of the separatist movement by security agencies will be fatal to the national security of Ghana.

“If we underestimate his death and think that the death of Paapavi ends the agitations from the point of view of the separatist movement then we will be laughing at the wrong side of our mouths,” Adam Bonaa stated.

The security analyst explained the basis of his caution citing the aftermath of the death of Osama Bin in the case of the Al-Qaeda terrorist group among others.

"The death of Osama Bin Laden who was literally the leader of Al-Qaeda did not stop the terrorist movement from spreading. It was rather after his death that we had various groups springing out of the Al-Qaeda group that we know and now they are everywhere in the world. We have them in the sub-region; In Mali, in Niger, In Burkina Faso and some of them are in Nigeria. We also know the story of Boko Haram. When the first leader of Boko Haram got killed by the Nigerian authorities, that did not stop Boko Haram from growing bigger,” Mr Bonaa said.

He thus called on the National Security Ministry and other security agencies to step up their game in monitoring the aftermath of Papavi’s death.

"I am expecting the leadership of this country especially the security services and in this case the National Security to take adequate measures and ensure that this man’s death will not let them go to sleep and expect that agitations are going to end. Studies have proven there is likely to be a leadership crisis and so they have got to start dealing with it,” the security analyst stated.





Among other things, Mr Bonaa urged the security agencies to consider all available options in managing the aftermath of Papavi’s death including burying him in an unmarked grave.

“Some of us are expecting that the leadership will not go to sleep but they will quickly organize themselves and treat his death as something that can spark another wave of confrontation or another wave of agitation. Even where they bury him is very significant if such leaders when they die are allowed to be buried in just any cemetery, chances are that his followers are going to draw inspiration.

"They are going to create a cult out of his death and start the agitations from where he was buried. So usually for persons like that, [they] are buried in an unmarked grave so that his mortal remains is not known to his followers but it depends on what the law says. And so one would have to do this taking a lot of things into consideration,” Mr Bonaa added.

Paapavi was arrested in 2019 and airlifted to Accra and charged with treason with some others. He was, however, released by the state on grounds of old age.

After several unsuccessful coup attempts, he declared independence for "Western Togoland" and went into hiding.

Papavi is said to have died in the last hours of October 15 at a hospital in the Volta Region following a short illness.