Kumasi: The Man Who Was Killed Over 20 Pesewas (PHOTO)

29-YEAR-OLD man at Sepe Buokrom in Kumasi met his untimely death following a misunderstanding that ensued between him and a driver�s mate over 20 pesewas on Tuesday afternoon. The deceased, who was identified as Abu popularly known as �Burger�, a resident of Sepe Buokrom, had his throat slashed by the door of a speeding Urvan bus registered GR 8653-11, from which he had just alighted. No sooner had Abu alighted from the front seat of the bus whose door was opened, than an argument arose between him and the driver�s mate over the actual fare for the trip. Abu insisted he would pay 30 pesewas for the journey while the driver and his mate were demanding 50 pesewas from Abu, who had boarded the bus from Airport Roundabout and was to alight at Sepe Buokrom. In the course of the heated argument, the driver of the vehicle, Kwaku Owusu-Ansah, suddenly sped off and Abu�s throat was hacked by the door of the bus, killing him instantly on the main Airport Roundabout- Antoa road. The driver, who realised his wrongdoing, reported himself to a police patrol team who had mounted a check point at the Buokrom Estate junction. He was consequently kept in police custody for questioning while the body of the deceased was taken to the morgue for autopsy. Narrating the issue to DAILY GUIDE, Richard Karikari of the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) said Abu joined the Kenyase bus at Airport Roundabout around 12 noon. The deceased, upon reaching Sepe Buokrom, alerted the driver that he would get down so the car should park for him to do so, which the driver obliged. Abu then gave the driver�s mate GH�1 and the mate in return gave him a change of 50 pesewas. The deceased then demanded that the mate should give him the 20 pesewas difference since, according to him, the fare for the trip was 30 pesewas and not 50 pesewas. This resulted in a hot argument between the deceased, the driver and his mate. Abu who was standing at the right front side of the car, whose door was then opened, tried getting onboard the bus to press home further for his 20 pesewas difference. At that point the driver of the vehicle suddenly sped off, and the opened door of the car trapped Abu�s neck and slashed it opened. The deceased fell heavily on the roadside with blood oozing from his neck, resulting in his instant death. The horrific incident attracted a sizeable number of curious people to the scene, who watched in awe as Abu lied motionless. The NRSC staff lamented that incidents of fisticuffs between passengers and drivers over fares was on the rise in the city. Karikari admonished passengers not to fight with drivers over fares since it could lead to bad consequences. He suggested to passengers to �take the number of a car whose driver you think is cheating you and report to the police or the driver�s unions for the necessary action to be taken against him�.