Tolon Naa laid to rest

The Paramount Chief of the Tolon Traditional Area, Tolon Naa Alhaji Major (Rtd) Sulemana Abubakari, has been buried in accordance with the customs and traditions of the area following his death on Sunday afternoon August 23, 2026, after a short illness.

Naa Nyab Tolon Naa died peacefully at his palace, the traditional seat of the Tolon Traditional Area.

The late chief, a retired senior officer of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), was enskinned as Tolon Naa in 2019 by the late Ya-Na Abubakari Mahama II at the Gbewaa Palace in Yendi.

Before his enskinment, Major (Rtd) Sulemana played a significant role in the Dagbon peace process, contributing to efforts to restore peace and unity to the traditional area.

He joined the GAF in 1963 and was later commissioned as an officer. He served as an escort to Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah.

The late chief also played a key role in foiling the May 15, 1979 coup attempt led by Jerry John Rawlings. He subsequently served as the Commanding Officer of the Armoured Reconnaissance Regiment in 1980.

During the PNDC era, Naa Nyab Tolon Naa went into self-exile, spending time in Togo and Nigeria. He also participated in military operations during the Liberian civil war.

He returned to Ghana in 2000 following a change in government and was appointed to the National Security Advisory Corps in 2001 by President John Agyekum Kufuor.

Naa Nyab Tolon Naa was one of the senior chiefs in the Dagbon traditional hierarchy and served as the traditional defence chief of the Ya-Na.

Under Dagbon’s traditional military structure, the Tolon Naa played a key role in mobilising warriors and defending the kingdom.

Born to Naa Alhassan Sulemana, a chief of Tali and later Tolon, the late chief was his father’s first son.

Following his father’s death, he became Regent of Tolon in 2001 and served in that capacity for 18 years before being enskinned as Tolon Naa in 2019.

He began his education in Tolon in 1949, later attended Kalpohini Middle School in Tamale and completed his secondary education at T.I. Ahmadiyya Secondary School in 1961.