Oblempong Nii Kojo Ababio V (inset) delivering his address at the end of year general meeting of the Ngleshie Alata Traditional Council held in Accra.

Use ADR to resolve disputes. Traditional councils advised

Yakubu Abdul-Jalil Dec - 30 - 2016 , 11:57 2 minutes read

The Paramount Chief of Ngleshie Alata Traditional Area, Oblempong Nii Kojo Ababio V, has urged traditional councils across the country to use the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism to resolve chieftaincy disputes in their localities to save time and resources.

He said the litigation process was time consuming, “hence instead of us wasting time and resources as individuals from the same lineage, I prefer that we use mediation to resolve our grievances.

“I, therefore, wish we adopt the ADR mechanism to resolve our numerous chieftaincy disputes within our traditional areas,” Nii Kojo Ababio stressed.

Concern

He made the call at an end of year general meeting of the traditional council in Accra last Friday.

The Ngleshie Alata Traditional Council superintends over James Town and other areas in the Greater Accra Region, including Mamprobi, Chorkor, Dansoman, Botianor and Weija.

Nii Kojo Ababio, who is also the president of the Ngleshie Alata Traditional Council, expressed concern over the vacuum created after the demise of some members of the traditional council due to litigation.

It was his view that the situation could have been avoided if the contesting parties had resorted to mediation.

The Judicial Committee of the traditional council, he said, had had to resolve eight chieftaincy cases this year, leaving three undetermined, “which is worrying, even though plans had been put in place to resolve them as soon as practicable,” Nii Kojo Ababio said.

Congratulation

The paramount Chief, on behalf of the traditional council, congratulated the President-elect, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and urged members of the council to refrain from partisan politics.