Don’t 'explode' unless Ghana kills any of us – Togolanders to followers

Separatist group Homeland Study Group Foundation (HSGF), which recently declared the Volta Region independent of Ghana to form the Western Togoland has warned the Ghanaian authorities against harming any of their citizens.

According to the group, they have only retrieved lands stolen from their ancestors and done nothing wrong.

“The HSGF, therefore, and hereby appeals to all Western Togolanders to remain focused and take it as true that the land which was the Western portion of the divided Germans Suzerainty of Togo is naturally theirs and that the long patience that they had exercised should not lead to explosion unless Ghana takes the life of a member of our populace,” Mr George Nyakpo, Deputy PRO of the group, said in a statement.

“The HSGF is simply taking her property away, it is the law of the international world that can deal with this matter and not the gun-bearing authority of Ghana,” the statement explained.

The group’s independence declaration of the region as Western Togoland was made by its 85-year-old leader, Mr Charles Kudzordzi also known as Papavi Hogbedetor, at a public gathering of its adherents at the premises of the former Unity Rural Bank which is a few metres away from the Ho Police Training school.

The secessionist declaration was broadcast live on Facebook.

The group, which has had several brushes with the law on the matter in the past, rode on the recent omission of the Volta Region from the list of critical roads to be constructed in 2020 when the Finance Minister presented next year’s budget to Parliament, in declaring the region independent.

The government of Ghana, via a press release from Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, announced that it “takes note of the activities” of the foundation, adding: “Ghana remains a sovereign state which has not ceded any part of its territory to any person or group of persons.”

“While admonishing the public to disregard the claims by the group, the general public is hereby informed that state security agencies are taking the necessary measures to ensure that persons involved with the illegal act, are dealt with in accordance with the law.

“Ghana’s security agencies remain in firm charge of Ghana’s territory and encourage all persons to continue with their daily activities normally”, the statement said.

But the leadership of the HSGF insists that they are just taking back what belongs to them and the Ghana government should handle the matter with diplomacy, insisting that their lands do not belong to Ghana, the then-Gold Coast.

“All are to note that our land the Western portion of the maliciously divided Togoland in 1914 was not part of the Gold Coast (Ghana's) land covered by the bond of 1844, which artificially carved out the Gold Coast (by the pen and finger of Commander Hill and a Fanti King) that the Western portion of the divided Togo is a separate country, state and nation recognised as such since 1916 by the League of Nations and it since became the world’s Class B Territory and later the UN Trusteeship Territory to Britain, Gold Coast/Ghana's colonial master to be nurtured to independence and, so, also was done to the Eastern portion of the Togoland and France”.

Below is the full statement:

The leadership of the Homeland Study Group Foundation has read with serious concern the statement from the information Minister of the Republic of Ghana, Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah.

In his statement, he said the Homeland Study Group Foundation has ceded part of Ghana and that the national security is taking action to deal with the group's membership.

We wish to remind him, the populace of Ghana and the entire world that the membership of the HSGF and the entire citizens of Western Togoland did not touch anything Ghanaian, if the minister is referring to the Ghana which was formerly called Gold Coast, a former British Colony then he should go back and look at the map of Gold Coast which is now Ghana particularly the years of 1844, and that of Togoland.

All are to note that our Land the Western portion of the maliciously divided Togoland in 1914 was not part of the Gold Coast (Ghana's) land covered by the bond of 1844 which artificially carved out the Gold Coast (by the pen and finger of Commander Hill and a Fanti King) that the Western portion of the divided Togo is a separate country, State and Nation recognized as such since 1916 by the League of Nations and it since became the world’s Class B Territory and later the UN Trusteeship Territory to Britain, Gold Coast/Ghana's colonial master to be nurtured to independence and so also was done to the Eastern portion of the Togoland and France.

The French and the British were disallowed from adding the divided Territories to their existing colonies of Dahomey (Benin) and the Gold Coast (Ghana) the French pass the Test while the English did not.

The case now rising has a long history to tell. A stolen property is always disputed over but often not if the suspect is peace-loving. The peace that HSGF embarked upon since 1994 should be carefully watched. The honorable minister should remember that all former government of the country Ghana had smelt this issue raised by the Western Togoland populace but approached it with care and diplomacy, today the HSGF taking a careful look at the present government administrative handling of the Western Togoland by the closure of her eyes over the Mandated Agreement of the League of Nations and the Trusteeship Agreement of the UN which held the hearts of Western Togolanders in control. This matter needs peace, care and maturity to be handled. The HSGF is simply taking her property away, it is the law of the international world that can deal with this matter and not the gun bearing authority of Ghana.

The HSGF, therefore, and hereby appeal to all Western Togolanders to remain focus and take it as true that the land which was the Western portion of the divided Germans Suzerainty of Togo is naturally theirs and that the long patience that they had exercised should not lead to explosion unless Ghana takes the life of a member of our populace.

The Nanumba, the Moshi, the Buzanga, the Yendi-Dagomba, the Kratchi, the Chokosi, the Twumblu, the Ntchumuru, the Adele, the Buaso, the Anyangna, the Dodo, the Dodi, the Akposor, the Avatime, the Santrokofi the Lolobi, the Nkonya, the Akpafu, the Lelemi, Agotime and the Ewe, to mentioned but a few should all remember the HSGF's code of peaceful activism.

Signed

Nyakpo George

Dep, PRO HSGF.