Kumasi, March 2, GNA - An Islamic scholar has expressed worry about the behaviour of some residents of the Tamale Metropolis and other parts of the Northern Regions, who habitually engage in violence and destruction of property at the least provocation to settle scores.

Sheikh Amin Bonsu, Deputy Chief Imam of the Ghana Muslim Mission (GMM), said the huge human and material resources being spent in combating and solving violent-related issues in the North, especially Tamale, could otherwise be invested in profitable ventures to improve the living conditions of the people. He told the Ghana News Agency in an interview at Kumasi, on Sunday. The Islamic scholar indicated that there were many challenges to grapple with in the North, such as hunger, diseases, poverty and ignorance. "These problems can only be solved when people of northern origin unite, live in peace and tolerate each other's views and opinions," he said.

Sheikh Bonsu said people who were behind the continuous conflicts in the North should bow down their heads in shame and advised the youth against being influenced to cause vandalism and violence. He appealed to stakeholders to invest more in education in the North since education was the only tool that had the tendency to enlighten the people to be law-abiding and disciplined, no matter the circumstances under which they found themselves. Sheikh Bonsu charged religious bodies to be tolerant of each other to foster social harmony and cohesion in the country.