Teshie chieftaincy dispute resolved

A protracted chieftaincy dispute that has deprived the people of Teshie, a suburb of Accra, of a chief for 22 years, has now been resolved.

The resolution of the dispute follows the intervention of the Ghana Association of Certified Mediators and Arbitrators (GACMA); led by Prof. Kofi Quashigah, the president of the association, and Mr Austin Gamey, Chief Executive Officer of Gamey and Gamey Academy of Mediation.

The six disputing factions, signing a peace agreement at a ceremony in Accra, pledged to unconditionally abide by all rules set out in the agreement.

The six houses which are Nii Ashitey We, Nii Trebi Ashitey We, Nii Ashikwei We, Nii Ashiboi We, Nii Okpong We Lenshie and Nii Okpong We Camp 2 - resolved to merge to form three royal houses.

Nii Trebi Ashitey We has joined Nii Ashitey We to form House One,while Nii Okpong We Camp 2 joined Nii Okpong We Lenshi to form Royal House Two, with Nii Ashiboi We joining Nii Ashikwei We for House Three.

The reconstituted houses have been tasked to select four persons each to form a Gyaase (vetting committee) to vet a nominee for Teshie Mantse from Nii Ashitey We, which is in line to occupy the stool.

At the ceremony, the Deputy Minister of Health, Mrs Gladys Ashitey, expressed regret that the dispute had led to some deaths and vandalisation of property in the area.

She said the most affected were women and children and was, therefore, thankful to God that a peace agreement had been reached by the disputed factions.

She expressed her appreciation to the Police Service for maintaining law and order in the area. She noted that the elders agreed to give up some of their positions for the sake of peace, adding that if they had remained intransigent, no decision would have been reached.

She therefore advised the people not to feel let down if some of their previously held positions had been given up by their leaders during the process.

She commended the elders of Teshie for their commitment to achieving a lasting peace in the area, saying that the parties were frank in their deliberation, which helped them to arrive at the decision to bury their differences.

She emphasised that none of the houses was subordinate to another.

A Parish Priest at the St George Anglican Church of Ghana, Rev. Father Daniel Ashitey, flanked by the leaders of the various houses, read the agreement document amidst applause.