The government has begun deploying armoured buses disguised as commercial passenger vehicles to track and arrest highway robbers operating on major roads across the country, Interior Minister Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak has revealed.
Speaking at a town hall meeting in Damongo in the Savannah Region on Saturday, May 23, 2026, the Minister said the specially equipped buses are constantly rebranded to avoid attracting attention from criminal gangs.
According to him, the strategy has proven effective in ongoing operations against highway robbery.
“We have acquired armoured buses, and these buses have been doing a wonderful job on most of our long stretch roads because we keep branding them differently. Today we brand them as STC, the next day as VIP, another day as OA, just to make sure we get the perpetrators,” he said.
Mr Mubarak disclosed that the operation has already led to the arrest of several suspected robbers, commending the Inspector General of Police and his team for their efforts.
Also addressing the gathering, Roads and Highways Minister Governs Kwame Agbodza linked the growing incidents of highway robbery to the poor state of some roads across the country.
He argued that deteriorating road conditions create opportunities for criminals to attack travellers, especially on long and isolated stretches.
The Minister also expressed concern about delays affecting some road projects under the government’s “Big Push” infrastructure programme. He singled out contractors working on the Wa-to-Wiawso corridor, which cuts through parts of the Savannah Region, as among the worst-performing and urged those who had abandoned their sites to return to work immediately.
The town hall meeting, themed “Resetting Ghana,” also gave the Savannah Regional House of Chiefs the opportunity to present key development concerns on behalf of the Yagbonwura, Bii Kunuto Jewu Soale I.
Among the issues raised were persistent water shortages in Damongo, poor road networks, delays in the regional hospital project, and demands for more districts, a university, and the recruitment of Gonja language teachers.
President John Dramani Mahama, who is currently on a nationwide “Resetting Ghana” tour, responded to several of the concerns during the event.
He announced that preparatory work for the Damongo water project had been completed and that the initiative had entered the procurement stage. The project is expected to draw water from Yapei to serve Busunya, Damongo, Larabanga and nearby communities.
The President also disclosed plans to establish a science and technology university in the Savannah Region. According to him, China has already provided a US$30 million grant for the project, while an additional US$100 million funding request has been submitted to the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa.
On healthcare, President Mahama said the region would receive a 300-bed regional referral hospital fitted with modern facilities, including MRI, CT scan and X-ray equipment.