Yaa Naa Andani’s funeral on hold; 17 Mourners injured, 7 arrested

Dark clouds that hung over the Dagbon State in the observance of the final funeral rites of Yaa Naa Yakubu Andani II heightened when the Andanis and Abudus clashed in Yendi yesterday, leaving 17 with varying degrees of injury.

The latest hostilities had stalled the performance of the funeral, which was part of the road map for peace in the troubled Dagbon Traditional Area.

The police said the injured persons were receiving treatment at the Yendi Government Hospital.

A number of houses were torched in the upheaval as well.

According to the police, seven persons were arrested for their alleged involvement in the disturbances and were in custody assisting in investigations.

The violence started in the afternoon at the time the Andanis were getting ready to begin the funeral rites.

There were sporadic gunshots in some parts of Yendi, which threatened the peace and security in the area.

As the security situation became threatening, some of the traditional leaders and people who had gone to Yendi to participate in the funeral rites were seen returning home.

No death

According to the Yendi Divisional Police Crime Officer, Mr Michael Happy Addae, no death was recorded in yesterday’s incident as of 8 p.m.

He explained that yesterday’s incident occurred at about midday with the throwing of stones from the protagonists, a situation which later degenerated into gunshots and burning of houses.

Mr Addae, however, said the situation was calm as security personnel had intensified their patrols in the municipality.

As of press time yesterday, it was yet to be established whether the entire funeral process would be postponed indefinitely as a result of the intermittent disturbances that had marred the performance of the funeral since last Thursday.

Background

The Andani Royal Family in the Dagbon chieftaincy divide deferred the final funeral rites of Yaa Naa Yakubu Andani following claims by the family that the Bolin Lana, Muhamadu Abdulai of the Abudu Royal Family, was occupying a part of the temporary Gbewaa Palace.

According to the Andanis, that part of the palace was significant to the performance of the funeral, since it was usually occupied by some chiefs who played significant roles in the performance of a Yaa Naa’s funeral rites.

The Andanis were supposed to begin the final funeral rites of Yaa Naa Yakubu Andani on January 4, 2019 but they rescheduled the event to take place from January 11, 2019 to January 18, 2019.

Abudus defiant

Responding to the concerns raised by the Andanis, the Abudus said: “We wish to state without any equivocation that Bolin Lana Mahamadu Abdulai is not moving an inch from where he is temporarily residing. This demand is mischievous, preposterous and unachievable.”

They added that the Mba Dugu’s residence “plays absolutely no role in the performance of a funeral of a Yaa Naa. “

The Abudus questioned: ”Was the ‘Gundonaa’ and ‘Yeni Limam’ housed in that palace during the funeral of Yaa Naa Mahamadu Abdulai IV?”

They added that “What is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.”

Road map

The performance of the final funeral rites of the two Yaa Naas is part of the recommendations of the Asantehene-led Committee of Eminent

Chiefs in the road map document submitted to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on November 21, 2018.

Other members of the committee are the Yagbonwuura, Tuntumba Boresa II; the Overlord of the Gonja Traditional Area and the Nayiri, Naa Bohagu Abdulai Mahama Sheriga, and the Overlord of the Mamprugu Traditional Area.

The Committee of Eminent Chiefs was set up by former President John Agyekum Kufuor in 2002 to find a lasting solution to the Dagbon chieftaincy dispute after the murder of Yaa Naa Yakubu Andani II in Yendi.