Father of Ga Mantse laid to rest

The mortal remains of the late Dr Ebenezer Nii Armah Tackie, the father of the Ga Mantse, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, was has been laid to rest in a private burial.

This was after a burial service characterised by traditional rites was held at the Ga Mantse Palace in Accra for the former Dean of the Faculty of Environmental and Development Studies and Head of the Department of Architecture, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).

He was 83 years old and left behind four children and seven grandchildren.

Clad in red and black attire, mourners from diverse fields converged at the Ga Mantse Palace in Accra to pay their last respect as they slowly filled pass the mortal remains of the deceased.

Among them was Rebecca Akufo-Addo, First Lady of the Ghana, paramount chiefs of the various Ga traditional areas, a delegation from the National House of Chiefs, paramount chiefs from other ethnic groups, clergy, Members of Parliament, members of the Ghana Institute of Engineers and Planners, and the Ghana Bar Association.

In a touching tribute to his father, the Ga Mantse, described his late father as an ambitious and selfless person who combined his academic job with his private consultancy and leadership roles in several groups.

“At an advanced age, instead of taking over as Mantse, he preferred to advise me behind the scenes, and ensured that our great heritage was well maintained for future generations. He was my chief advisor and I am bereft of his wise counsel”, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II added.

Also paying tribute, a representative of the Ga Paramount Stool Dzase Tunma We, Abola, noted that the late Dr Tackie made time to attend to every meeting of the Ga Paramount Stool Dzase and issues that affected his royal ruling house despite his busy schedule.

Furthermore, the representative indicated that the late Dr Tackie was instrumental in gathering historical materials of the late Ga Mantse, King Tackie Tawiah I, who reigned as Ga Mantse from 1862-1902, adding “your contributions towards the growth of the Ga State will never be forgotten.”

Delivering the sermon, Archbishop Nicholas Duncan Williams, Presiding Archbishop and General Overseer of the Action Chapel International, reminded the mourners to be deliberate in working on their salvation.

Death, he said, was inevitable irrespective of age, or status in life, as it was appointed onto man to die once, but after that judgement, as he referenced the scriptures of the holy Bible.

He therefore urged each and everyone to live in peace and harmony, and always pray for God’s forgiveness, because “we have an account to give to our maker for the kind of life we live here on earth. Real life begins after death.”

Prayers were said for the bereaved family and the Ga State after which the casket containing the mortal remains of the late Dr Tackie was lifted and taken around the funeral grounds three times according to tradition before the final interment.

Some of the projects the late Dr Tackie supervised and planned as an architect were the new Kumasi Shopping Mall, Kumasi Central and Bantama Market, and the Makola Shopping Mall.

GNA