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When Did The Kingdom Of Asantehene Become A Self-Governing Entity To Carry Out Development?

Feature Article When Did The Kingdom Of Asantehene Become A Self-Governing Entity To Carry Out Development?
MON, 13 JAN 2025 6

The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II’s statement to the World Bank's Western and Central Africa Vice President, Ousmane Diagana, that "he can't depend on politicians for development in Ashanti Region" is an unpleasant remark that should be discussed. The response of Otumfuo has a variety of ramifications, including a showing of bad humor and, more specifically, a show of rage and dissatisfaction against political parties, particularly the governments of the NPP and the NDC.

I think Ghanaians would be more curious to know why the World Bank Vice President for Western and Central Africa, Ousmane Diagana, and his team chose to visit the Asantehene in his palace to discuss development with him rather than meet with His Excellency John Mahama, the country's new president, considering that the Asante nation's king is not responsible as a self-governing body capable of carrying out developments throughout Ghana.

More importantly, in Ghana's political history, the National Democratic Congress has shown to be the most effective party in terms of constructive progress compared to the NPP, its adversary, and it’s not a secret that the NDC has been responsible for the major projects in the Ashanti Region, the NPP's stronghold. It was based on this reason that the ruling government lost many parliamentary seats and the presidential race in the December 2024 elections. So what does the World Bank need from Otumfuo?

Is it possible that the World Bank has lost faith in Ghana’s political parties in light of the fact that the former government, the NPP, embezzled a significant portion of the funds Ghana received from the World Bank, including those related to COVID-19? As you may recall, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Bank awarded the previous administration 430 million dollars. However, Ghanaians were informed that the financial institution had donated $100 million after embezzling $330 million before the World Bank director came forth to expose the government.

On my personal blog entry titled "Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, The Asantehene, Has Let The Ashanti People Down More Than Akufo Addo," I emphasized that Otumfuo never appreciated the developments of Mahama in the Ashanti nation because of tribalism. According to him, “The need for the project office to be located in Kumasi rather than being managed from Accra, since the center of Accra for all official duties is causing a delay in development.”

The Asantehene told the World Bank team that he doesn’t want to depend on them, referring to politicians (the NDC and the NPP), so let's have a social contract and we do it. I'm still not sure what he meant by social contract; however, it seems that he wants to sign some kind of contract or agreement with the World Bank team so that he can be trusted with funds related to the Ashanti Region's development. Even though I might be mistaken, the Asantehene's actions are wholly incorrect.

The Ashanti Kingdom has more gold than any other region in Ghana; therefore, if the Asantehene is concerned about regional development, he would not stand by and watch as his political party, the NPP, dominated Ghana and his province for eight squandering years without producing any progress. The World Bank team visiting the Asantehene is not illegal, but I think it is totally improper if he gets any funding from the organization for the Ashanti nation's growth.

The Asantehene's greed is preventing him from recognizing that what he said, or what he was attempting to establish with the World Bank Team, did not comply with Ghana's Constitution. It is disrespectful to both the governments of the NDC and the NPP. The Asantehene interpreted Bernard Antwi-Bosiako's claim that his personal army is more powerful than any in the Ashanti Region as disrespectful to his kingdom, but he is also acting in the same way against the new Mahama's government.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the Asantehene, is 100% NPP and a native of the Ashanti Region. He is grieving over the loss of the NPP despite being unable to criticize his incompetent and corrupt government. His remarks that he can't rely on any politician for development demonstrate a deeper sense of jealousy for Mahama, who he knows has done more in development in the Ashanti Region than any NPP politician.

Joel Savage
Joel Savage, © 2025

Belgian-Ghanaian journalist, Joel Savage, writes the "A Mixture Of Periodicals" column. The Flemish Journalists Association member frequently contributed to the features sections of the Weekly Spectator, Ghanaian Times, Daily Graphic and The Mirror. He lives in Belgium.  Column: Joel Savage

Disclaimer: "The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect ModernGhana official position. ModernGhana will not be responsible or liable for any inaccurate or incorrect statements in the contributions or columns here." Follow our WhatsApp channel for meaningful stories picked for your day.

Comments

African Star | 1/13/2025 1:31:03 PM

Sometimes, our dignitaries tend to 'loggo-liggi' although you have a great point. It is the poison that we have in our ants that does not fit the pants. The neo-colonial zit that sees our royals driving Rolls Royce instead of a Kantanka- DENG!

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