King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II
The Ga Mantse, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, has taken exception to the recent incident which occurred when some rowdy youth in Nima attacked persons who had come to sprinkle the traditional kpokpoi, an annual traditional rite observed in the larger Ga Adangbe ethnic group.
In a strongly authored letter which was directed to the Chairman of the Greater Accra Regional Security Council, who is the regional minister and copied to the Greater Accra Regional Police Commander and the Nima Police Commander, the King stated that “the very recent violence and confrontations at Nima has come to the notice of His Royal Majesty King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II and the entire membership of the Ga Traditional Council.”
The King and the membership of the Ga Traditional Council have in the light of the development demanded of the Regional Security Council “to take steps to restore law and order and bring the culprits to book.”
The King has admonished the parties involved in the incident to “respect the law and ensure that calmness is restored in Nima. It is equally important to note that where the laws of the state are flouted, consequential action will be taken.”
The King warns that he and the entire Ga Traditional Council “would not condone the act of unlawfully and disrespectfully intercepting the sprinkling of Kpokpoi and attacks on the performers of this important rite. Such an act will be considered a provocative disdain for the custom and culture of the Ga Dangme people.”
Issues pertaining to the ownership of land, the statement stressed, may be referred to the traditional councils of the law courts and not subjected to the prerogatives of families and communities.
A few weeks ago during the annual sprinkling of kpokpoi, a corn meal eaten with palm nut soup, representatives of the Gas were physically attacked by irate Nima youth who warned that the performance of the annual rite should cease.
There has not been dearth of trouble in Nima in recent times. A new chief for the suburb was reportedly installed by another group even when Nii Futa, the recognised personality is alive and performing his role as such.
Then came the issue of the sprinkling of kpokpoi against the backdrop of the unresolved dispute between the Futa family and the Odoi Kwaos, even after the case went to court many years ago.
By A.R. Gomda