Chieftaincy trouble simmers in Bimbilla

Accra, Aug 18, GNA - A faction of the Gbugmayili Clan of the Nanumba Traditional Council on Monday dissociated the Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama, from any involvement of enskinment of two Bimbilla Chiefs.

"We wish to state in very clear terms that the Vice President neither interfered in the nomination, selection and enskinment of Alhaji Dawuni Salifu, II as Bimbilla Naa nor caused to be reversed any Bimbilla Naa already enskinned."

At a press conference in Accra, attended by a number of chiefs from the faction of the Gbugmayili Gate, Mr Bawa Adams Gunta, Spokesperson for the faction, said they were shocked at what they called "attempts by a section of the Kingmakers to drag certain personalities in the NPP Government of Northern extraction into the chieftaincy crisis at Nanung."

The group said after the funeral rites of the late Bimbilla Naa, there were attempts by a faction of the six of the nine kingmakers, led by one Azindow Nagtoma, who they accused of styling himself as Kpatihi Naa to enskin one Mr Andani Dassana, a technician with the Nasia Rice Company, as the Bimbilla Naa.

Mr Gunta said they however, said Mr Adani Dassana had not gone through the hierarchical procedure and approval, against the then Nakpa Naa Alhaji Dawuni Salifu.

The Regional Security Council, he said, sensed danger and invited the nine kingmakers to the Bimbilla Skin and the kingmakers, on March 23, this year, they undertook and signed to suspend the enskinment of the Bimbilla Naa, or any other chief.

Mr Gunta stated that it was not the Vice President who signed the undertaking.

He also dissociated the Vice President from the arrest of the six kingmakers, and said the six were arrested for failure to attend court when the Jou Naa, the chairman of the kingmakers reported their alleged furtive moves to enskin Mr Dassana as Bimbilla Naa. The group said Alhaji Dawuni Salifu was enskinned, following a ruling in his favour by the Judicial Committee of the Nanumba Traditional Council, to which the court referred the case. They also denied any Security Forces harassment of the other contending party, and warned against any attempt to link the Nanumba Chieftaincy to that of Dagomba. 18 Aug. 03