‘Don’t distort history of Offinso’
The Asona Ashirem Royal Family of Offinso has petitioned the planning committee of the Mmoaninko Festival, to take a relook at what it calls, “A distorted history of Offinso”.
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The Mmoaninko festival is celebrated by the people of Offinso once every two years and has over the past 20 years been observed to commemorate the bravery, astuteness, foresight and dedication of past paramount chiefs of the area, notably Nana Dwamena Akenten and Okofo Wiafe Akenten I.
This year’s celebration of the festival will reach a climax on Saturday, November 29. The Offinsomanhene, Nana Wiafe Akenten III, will sit in state. Dignitaries expected to grace the occasion include the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and President John Dramani Mahama.
In a petition addressed to the chairman of the planning committee of the Mmoaninko Festival and copied to the Offinsohene, Offinsohemaa, the Registrar of the Offinso Traditional Council, Asonahene of Offinso and other interested personalities, the family seeks to draw the attention of the committee to distortions in the written history of Offinso and are as such, challenging its originality.
The letter, copies of which were made available to the media, was written by historian and spokesperson for the Asona Ashirem Royal Family of Offinso, Opanin Kwabena Adom. He said the history of Offinso as written and presented by the planning committee of the festival, “smacks of a scheme to ‘rewrite offinso history’ based on half truths, distortions and fallacies”.
It cited, for example, that touting the names of one Druwaa Manu and Atta Bio as heirs to the female person of the Offinso Asona Royal Stool and linking Druwaa Manu to the Asona clan origin “are all fabrications and, therefore, not tenable”.
Opanin Adom recalls that he explained the issue of Druwaa Manu in a letter he wrote to the author of a book titled: “An outline of Asante history, Part I, Vol. 1,” a copy of which was attached to the petition letter written to the festival planning committee, detailing that the history of Offinso as presented in the book does not give a true reflection of Offinso history.
He writes that; “In as much as your committee is aware, it takes a combined history of both Ashirem and Akonkondease Asona Royal Families to constitute the history of Offinso Ancestry. I may emphasise here that nobody or group of persons have any exclusive right to diabolically ‘Rewrite Asona Royal Ancestral History”.
He further writes that: “On the basis of this, may I with a great deal of respect draw your committee’s attention to the fact that it is incumbent upon you to arrange for prior consultation with both of the royal families so that you would avail Offinsoman an opportunity to read credible history about their royal ancestry”.