The government has condemned the purported enskinment of a new Chief in the conflict-stricken town of Bawku in the Upper East Region.
The Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, in a statement described the development as illegal and a threat to National Security.
“The Government condemns developments in Nalerigu today February 15, 2023, concerning the purported enskinment of a new Bawku Naba as illegal and a threat to National Security.”
The Overlord of the Mamprugu Traditional Area, Naa Bohagu Mahami Abdulai Shariga II, reportedly enskinned Alhaji Seidu Abagre as the new Bawku Naba Wednesday morning at Nalerigu, the North East Regional capital.
The new Bawku Naba is expected to be accompanied by elders of the Nayiri from Nalerigu to Bawku after performing the traditional rituals.
Hundreds of people especially the youth trooped into the Nayiri palace to participate in the coronation ceremony amidst heavy security presence to maintain law and order in the area.
However, the government in has reiterated that Naba Asigri Abugrago Azoka II is the Bawku Naba, duly gazetted and a member of the National and Upper East Regional Houses of Chiefs.
The Security agencies have therefore been directed to arrest and prosecute any other person who holds himself out as a Bawku Naba.
The statement added any developments that have the potential to undermine the peace of Bawku will be dealt with swiftly and in accordance with law.
Meanwhile, there Bawku chieftaincy conflict is a struggle between Kusasis and Mamprusis over the occupancy of the Bawku skin as Bawkunaba.
The conflict has persisted over the years and natives of both ethnic groups leaving scores of people losing their lives and many others sustaining various degrees of injuries. There is heavy military deployment in the area to restore peace.
