Western chiefs urged to be vociferous on issues of oil exploration…as `Chieftaincy Bulletin` provides avenue

THE SENIOR Programme Manager of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), Mr. Isaac Owusu-Mensah, has told chiefs in the Western Region that they must let their voices be heard stridently, in the event that oil exploration activities cause problems in the region.

He said in spite of the national euphoria about the oil found in commercial quantities in the region, and also located at the off shore of the country, it had its own challenges for both environmental and human development for, especially people in the Western Region.

According to him, though the government had pledged its willingness and capacity to protect the citizens from exploitation by oil companies, it would be important that the chiefs in the region make their positions known, in case oil companies embark on exploitation or bad practices.

This is because, “Nananom are the custodians of the land for the dead, the transient living, and yet unborn citizens, with a responsibility to protect the land from exploitation and degradation,” he explained.

Mr. Owusu-Mensah was speaking at the first General Meeting of the Western Regional House of Chiefs (WRHC), coupled with educating members of the House on the New Chieftaincy Act, on the theme, “Act 759 of 2008 and the Ethics of Chiefs,” on Friday.

He pointed out that untoward exploitations, by oil business consortiums, had the possibility of leading to clashes between civil society and the companies, citing Nigeria as a place where such struggles continue without much being heard from the traditional leaders.

In view of this, and the mandate of chiefs in Ghana, he urged the chiefs not to be silent when things go wrong, but fight for their people's livelihoods by making their concerns known to the appropriate authorities for the needed action to be taken.

Particularly, the chiefs would not have much problem in this regard, since the New Chieftaincy Act 759 of 2008 has made provision for the National House of Chiefs to issue a publication known as the “Chieftaincy Bulletin.”

This bulletin is to serve as the official mouthpiece or newsletter for chiefs and chieftaincy issues in the country, to specifically inform the public about who the legitimate chiefs in Ghana are.

Among other things, the first issue of the bulletin, which is also to express the views of chiefs on issues of chieftaincy and national interest, has come out with the names of registered chiefs in the country.

Furthermore, Mr. Owusu-Mensah urged chiefs of the regional house to encourage families and kingmakers to follow established lines of succession in their legislative instruments, as has been laid down for centuries.

The President of the WRHC, Awulae Attibrukusu III, said the various houses of chiefs and other structures of chieftaincy were all creatures of statutes, and because laws are dynamic, they keep changing with societal needs, and demands of time.

Thus, it became necessary to review Act 370, which was in place for about thirty years, to meet the new challenges of the modern times.

He noted that the meeting afforded them the opportunity to meet with legal experts to explain and give the chiefs insight into the new Chieftaincy Act in their local languages, and also empower them to face the new challenges of the present and future.

“It is true that we all made inputs through the various Houses of Chiefs, which resulted in the new Act 759 of 2008, but unfortunately its understanding or real meaning is not easy,” he said, adding that the chiefs should take advantage of the training to obtain an understanding of the Act.