… goat meat for X’mas turns sour

Having a meal with a difference on the table at Christmas and New Year day is a normal norm in many homes.

So when Kingsley Agyekum (not his real name), a Ghanaian residing in the city of Parma in northern Italy, left his home in the company of a friend to a remote outskirt from the city, buy and slaughter a goat so he can give his family and friends a good treat on Christmas day it all appeared he was on a normal course, especially among many Africans.

But little did he know that his effort to provide a good meal with goat meat on the table could have caused him his life.

The story went that a couple of days before Christmas, Agyekum and his friend went to the quite farm locality in Mezzani, Parma, where some Ghanaians and others go to buy either goat or sheep, slaughter, process it at the site and bring it home to store which helps to cut down expenditure on meat for the family for some months.

Most Ghanaians prefers to have the skin of the animal on after burning off the its fur, this they say brings out the taste of the meat in the soup, perhaps the reason for doing it their own way than how it can be found at the meat shop. Agyekum and his friend had almost finished their job on the slaughtered animal and in the process of cutting the meat when the vendor, an Italian who owns the ranch with his family, started continuously casting insults unto God -typical of many Italians when things they are doing doesn’t go right or when they are angry with someone.

Agyekum heard the insinuations against God and being a Christian against such remarks felt God doesn’t deserve those words so he called the attention of the man (vendor) against his comments asking him to stop insulting God.

Some minutes passed and it appeared all is forgotten but not the Italian man, he has taken it far and felt provoked for being rebuked for his comments. Agyekum had his back towards the Italian who took one of the big sharp knives for processing animals at the farm.

He picked up the story here: “I was in the course of cutting my meat with my back towards him and he was just some few meters away, he threw the knife sharply at me but something instantly occurred to me to turn and I caught the big knife which cut me badly giving me serious injuries on my fingers and hand to which I felt down bleeding from the wounds.”

And as if that was not enough the man went into the house and brought a chain and as his victim was lying in pain bleeding he lashed him several times over causing further cuts on Agyekum’s body.

The pathetic story ended at the hospital but Agyekum is now recovering at home with many stitches on his hand and fingers.

A report has been made to the police in the locality by the victim but it doesn’t seem it will go anywhere from there.

Reason? Those Italians at the farm are untouchables and people fear them to even report them to the police. This seems to have been proved right as according to Agyekum the police in the locality didn’t seem serious to press charges.

When I called Agyekum on the phone to confirm the story he told me he wants to see a lawyer to push his case forward.

The other side of the problem is, Italian law forbids such practices of slaughtering animals on a farm or elsewhere without proper veterinary checks which can cost both the vendor and buyer a fine up to €5,000.

A Ghanaian woman who knows well the behaviour of the people at the farm house is advising Agyekum not to push his case forward. In her view he and his family must be prepared to leave the city if the case should proceed further. “They are ruthless and do not have a good record in the locality, people fear them and the police are not doing anything to control them,” she sums up.