MANYA KROBO UNDER SIEGE FROM GOVERNMENT

Odeopeor Nene Kwesitsu Azago I, Mahefalor (Defender) of Manya Krobo State

12th April 2012

The Minster of Local Government and Rural Development

Accra

MANYA KROBO UNDER SIEGE FROM GOVERNMENT

Hell has broken loose on the state of Manya Krobo. Reports reaching us especially the office of the Mahefalor (Defender) of the Manya Krobo State, Odeopeor Nene Kwesitsu Azago I, have revealed yet another diabolical plan in what appears to be a deliberate policy of the government of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to dismantle and dismember the Manya Krobo State for reasons best known to them.

The facts are that, after the death of the great Krobo King, Oklemekuku Azu Mate Kole II, in the 1990, the PNDC, which is the antecedent of the NDC party, took advantage of the leadership vacuum in Manya Krobo, which was exacerbated by the protracted succession dispute over the stool, to embark upon a policy of reducing the size and influence of the Manya Krobo State.

In line with this policy, several Manya Krobo villages were cut off from the then Manya Krobo District to form part of the two New districts of Fanteakwa and Asougyaman, in the states of Akyem Abuakwa and Akwamu respectively, which in the past were involved in pockets of boundary dispute with Manya Krobo.

It is now clear that the PNDC/NDC's strategy was to improve their political fortunes in the Akyem Abuakwa and Akwamu states which are traditional strongholds of the Danquah Busia Tradition in Ghanaian Politics, by rewarding the two states with Manya Krobo lands.

In spite of this anti-Krobo policy of the PNDC/NDC government, it has enjoyed comfortable support in the Krobo area, because the CPP Political Tradition which is the favourite of the Krobos since independence could not put its house in order when the country returned to constitutional rule in 1993, and most leading politicians of the CPP joined the NDC. However, the NDC is plotting its own demise now in the Krobo area, if it continues with its anti-Krobo and especially anti-Manya Krobo policy.

After the creation of Fanteakwa and Asuogyaman districts with Manya Krobo lands, the NDC government continued its policy of dismantling the Manya Krobo States by further attempts to cede our land to other traditional areas. Currently, the Manya Krobo State is battling the government in the Supreme Court in another attempt by the NDC government to take away Akuse, which was the first capital of the Manya Krobo State to Osudoku in the Dangme West District.

Again this is another act of political expediency of the NDC, for the people of Osudoku had in the past laid claim to the land of Akuse, but all the rulings by courts of competent jurisdictions from colonial to modern times were unequivocal that Akuse belongs to Manya Krobo. Then NDC stepped in to use state power to award it to Osudoku. This will only happen over the death of the last man in the Manya Krobo State.

As if these acts of marginalization and harassment of Manya Krobo is not enough, the NDC government has started yet another move to cut away some land from the Upper Manya Krobo District to Yilo Krobo also for political expediency such that even the DCE for Upper Manya Krobo, who is the representative of the government, had to intervene with a caution letter to the government not to go ahead with that policy.

The latest move is even more serious, considering the fact that Manya and Yilo Krobo are bothers and the NDC government is set to create a blood bath and feud between them for the sake of political expediency. Common sense should tell any minister of local government or any government for that matter that issues of land knows no brotherhood, for most of the world's conflicts are between states that share common blood ancestry.

The proper thing for any minister of local government who is fit for the job to do is to do proper consultation to determine the efficacy of a policy of ceding land from one traditional area to another. Anyone who does not know this will do himself good by going to basic school to learn the rudiments of societal organization.

The Yilo Krobo Traditional Area shares boundaries with the New Juabeng, Akyem Abuakwa and the Akwapim traditional areas as well and the minister for local government who is an Akyem Abuakwa citizen will prove his tribal non-bias against the Krobos if he cuts away land from these traditional areas to create an additional district for the Yilo Krobo instead of ceding land from Manya Krobo. After all, Manya Krobo lands have been ceded to Fanteakwa and Asougyaman. Can Mr. Ampofo cede Akyem Abuakwa land to Akyem Kotoku or vice versa in a careless way as he is trying to do between the two Krobo State?

The Manya Krobo state has suffered enough land loss and will not permit the loss of any further inch of land to any district. This must be very clear to the government of the NDC or any future government of our nation. If Mr. Ampofo, the minister for local government, and his government fail to take away land from the Akan States that share boundaries with Yilo Krobo to create an additional district for the traditional area then Manya Krobo equally does not deserve to lose its land to Fanteakwa and Asuogyaman and this will mark the beginning of a new aggressive struggle by the Manya Krobo State to redeem all its lands from the Fanteakwa and Asuogyaman districts because there is a clear case of marginalisation and bias against the Krobos by the NDC government and they deserve to pay a price for that.

Now is the time for all Krobos to rise up and revive the Krobo bravery of ancient renown, to defend our land and heritage against not a foreign colonial power, but a government chosen by ourselves which is now abusing our right.

Krobo land cannot be sacrificed on the altar of partisan political opportunism. The message to the people of Manya Krobo, young and old, is to be vigilant and chase way anybody who comes to do anything by way of taking away an inch of our land anywhere.

We are not petitioning or begging the government not to take away our land again, we are warning the government not to touch us anymore, because the consequences will be disastrous for all of us.

Unfortunately for the government, the leadership vacuum in Manya Krobo has been filled with the enstoolment of Nene Sakite II as the successor of Oklemekuku Azu Mate Kole II, and more fortified with the creation of the office of the Mahefalor (Defender) and we are ready to defend our land and heritage.

We want to send a clear message to the Ghanaian and international community that any bloody conflict that may erupt in Manya Krobo over the confiscation of our land by our own government be blamed on the Government and not the Manya Krobo people.

Yours faithfully

SGND

Nene Kwesitsu Azago I

Mahefalor (Defender) of the Manya Krobo State

For more information please contact 0302 233 731 or 0303 200 369

CC:
1. The President of Ghana
2. The Vice President of Ghana
3. The Speaker of Parliament
4. The Chief Justice
5. The Chairman of the Council of State
6. Majority/Minority Leaders of Parliament
7. The President of National House of Chiefs
8. The President of the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs

9. The Christian Council of Churches
10. The Catholic Secretariat
11. The Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council
12. The Muslim Council of Ghana
13. The Ahmadiya Muslim Mission
14. The National Peace Council
15. The Chief of Defense Staff
16. The Inspector General of Police
17. The UN Representative in Ghana
18. The Head of all Diplomatic Missions in Ghana
19. The West African Network for Peace
20. Former United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan

21. Former President, J. A. Kuffuor
22. Former President, J. J. Rawlings
23. All flag bearers of Political Parties in Ghana
24. Chairmen of all Political Parties
25. All Traditional Priests of the Manya Krobo States

26. Kloma Gbi (Voice of the Krobo State)
27. All Krobo Youth Associations
28. The Media