Land, chieftaincy disputes take us back

Ordinarily, the enskinment of a sub-chief should not result in the death of 10 people. Rather, when a leader is installed for a community, it should bring about celebrations.

But these are uncertain times in Bimbilla, where last Thursday women, children and some men met their untimely death because two factions did not see eye to eye on the enskinment of a sub-chief.

The disagreement between the two factions over the enskinment  of a sub-chief by the Bimbilla Regent, Yelinbolingu-Naa Abdulai Dasana, resulted in gunshots that killed the 10 people, most of whom were women and children.

We believe that the needless deaths could have been prevented, if the regent and other leaders belonging to his faction had heeded the warning given by the District Security Committee (DISEC) that conditions were not safe for the enskinment to be done.

Much as we do not want to cry over spilt milk, we find it unfortunate that the DISEC’s warning was not heeded, with the excuse that preparations had already been made towards the enskinment and so it could not be put on hold.

The Daily Graphic also finds it unfortunate that feuding factions would not go to the negotiating table but rather point accusing fingers at each other and put the lives of the same people they would like to rule at risk.

Chieftaincy disputes in Bimbilla and other communities in the country, especially in the northern part, have not only resulted in the loss of lives but also the destruction of properties running into several millions of cedis.

Such disputes, which have ended in chaos, have also stalled the development of the communities involved – no wonder such communities continue to be the most deprived in the country.

Indigenes of such areas also become displaced, as they have to trek to other parts of the country in search of livelihoods, where they lose their identity as well because they take up other cultures.

The individuals who see bloodshed also become traumatised, while the future becomes uncertain for others because they lose their breadwinners.

The state also loses resources it could otherwise have used for development purposes in education or in providing the health needs of the people when soldiers and other security personnel are sent to the communities in disarray to keep law and order.

The chieftaincy institution is a very revered one, but anytime the chiefs get embroiled in chieftaincy and land disputes, it erodes the respect and the power of the whole institution.

We should know that if we destroy the chieftaincy institution, we will also irreparably erode all societal values and norms.

The Daily Graphic calls on all feuding factions in Bimbilla to smoke the peace pipe, so that the area breathes the fresh air of peace once and for all.

There is no gain in resorting to war to settle any differences. We believe that people are bound to have differences in any society, but the best way to iron out those differences is not through the barrel of the gun but by ‘jaw jawing’.

We, therefore, urge our chiefs to uphold the sanity of the chieftaincy institution by going to the negotiating table to draw a road map that will prevent the recurrence of violence that will hinder development and take all of us back.