Withdraw women & children; let the men fight

A former Greater Accra President of the Tertiary Education Institutions Network (TEIN) of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), has proposed that government withdraws all women and children from the troubled Dagbon spot in the Northern Region and allow the men to slug it out in the long standing Abudu and Andani conflict.

Mr. Fred Agbenyo argues that since both parties seem not ready for dialogue or peace, those who normally bear the brunt of such brawls, the vulnerable women and children, be relocated, so that the belligerent and bolshie can settle their scores.

“I have always blamed the state for some of these things. In Ghana the state has the right and authority to control every section of the country, no part of the country can say it is independent of the state so can do whatever it likes. So if we have used persuasion and we are not getting the necessary results, it is important the state gets involved seriously. I read a great play…where the men were always fighting so the women game together to find a solution to the constant fight. The women then embarked on a sex strike; no woman sleeps with the husband and the women seized the men’s treasury. Within some short time, they laid down their arms and stopped fighting. If we have tried hard and we are still not getting any results, lets come to an agreement to relocate the women and the children who normally suffer when these things go on and allow the men to stay, let the police guard them and prevent them from moving out of the town and do whatever they want to do with themselves because it is becoming too much,” he surmised.

Fred Agbenyo was contributing to a panel discussion on Peace FM’s Kokrokoo morning show.

His comments were borne out of the decision by the Abudu Royal Family not to subject themselves any longer to the peace-building process under the chairmanship of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II in the long-drawn-out Dagbon chieftaincy dispute.

The Abudus say they have lost faith and confidence in the Asantehene as an honest peace broker in the Dagbon conflict.

“We did not come to this position lightly,” the family said in a statement issued in Accra on Wednesday November 3rd.

The two families (Abudus and the Andanis) have been involved in a protracted chieftaincy row culminating in the death of the Ya-Na Yakubu Andani on March 27, 2002.

Mr. Agbenyo however, called on the state to step in since it is gradually tarnishing the country’s image in the eyes of the international community.

“I’m shocked at how this issue has dragged on…,Andanis and Abudus are the same people yet they are always fighting and government keeps investing our resources in them. The resources used to support police and military operations in restoring peace could be invested in developmental projects which will improve the standard of living for many Ghanaians…this is becoming too much,” he fumed.

“When these things continue to happen, the international media do not report it that it is a section of Ghana but they conclude that it is the whole Ghana and it doesn’t help the image of this country,” he lamented.