Minister challenges queenmother

The Deputy Minister of the Interior and Member of Parliament for Berekum has waded into the controversy surrounding the now infamous Tuobodom song questioning the mandate and authority of the Queenmother of Tuobodom to ban the song.

Retired Captain Nkrabeah Effah Dartey says Nana Nyarko Antwiwaa, Adontenghemaa of Tuobodom has no grounds to order a ban of the song.

The MP whose constituency included Jinijini, one of the controversial towns in the song, said the Queen mother can say what she pleases but as far as he is concerned, the people of Tuobodom are represented by the MP for Techiman and therefore she cannot usurp the power of the MP and call for the abandonment of the song.

“As far as I am aware the MP and the sitting Chief of Techiman represent the people. The queen mother, yes, she is a very influential person in the scheme of things, but as to whether what she is saying is a broad representative for the entirety of the populace, I have my doubts,” he said.

The MP who is a playwright said he would not recommend that the song be banned since “ the rhythm for me is very nice, enjoyable and pleasing to the ear”.

He asked people of the town to allow the music to die naturally from the scene.

“What I would recommend is that the people should just keep quiet and allow the music to die a natural death, I predict maximum one year, the song would be lost,” he said.

The minister said the queen mother might not win her case if she proceeds to the law courts to file for compensation or damage for the representation in the lyrical content of the music.

“ As to whether she would advance very far in the law courts, I'm not too sure, because I remember my law of defamation and I'm not too sure whether the song has defamed the people of Tuobodom”, he said.

The traditional authorities of Tuobodom, a town in the Brong Ahafo region has protested lyrics used in a hip-life sung by new rap sensation, Nkasei.

The authorities say the song has defamed the town and its people and are calling for it to be banned.

They are also demanding an unqualified apology from the artistes.