Bimobas Celebrate Danjour Festival

Kpikpira (UER) Feb 17, GNA- The Chiefs and people of Kpikpira in the Garu-Tempane District near Bawku at the weekend celebrated their Danjour Festival with a pledge to work towards promoting education, general development of the area and peace and unity. The Festival, which is celebrated every year by the Bimobas in memory of their ancestors, is also used as a means of promoting friendship, peace and unity among the people. The period is also used to assess the developmental needs of the people and to raise funds for the Girl Child Endowment Fund put up to support brilliant girls who need financial support for their education.

Presently, 22 girls in the Junior High School and one in the Senior High School in the town are being supported while 50 more students have been selected to be sponsored this year.

Mr. Alhassan Samari, Upper East Regional Minister, addressing the gathering at Kpikpira, called on the traditional and pinion leaders and the youth of the Bawku area to work in concert with the Regional Security Committee towards ensuring that peace returned to the area. "In a war of 'Brother against Brother' and 'Sister against Sister', there can neither be a conqueror nor a loser. One thing only can be certain and it is that we all loose together", he said. He said Government was embarking on many development interventions aimed at improving the living conditions of the people and it was necessary to maintain peace so that the projects could be undertaken properly.

Mr. Samari said more bore-holes would be sunk in the area to provide potable water, electricity extended to the area and the road from Garu to Bawku tarred.

Welcoming guests to the ceremony, Mr. Emmanuel Asigri, Garu-Tempane District Chief Executive noted that the Danjour festival and others like it would help entrench the culture of the people and protect the youth from foreign cultures that were not helping them.

He commended the people for their efforts at promoting and preserving their culture and for the initiative they had taken to support education and other developmental projects. The Elders of the area, represented by Mr. Joseph Kpenka Dindiok, reiterated their plea for the Bimoba language, Moar, to be included in the local FM station, saying, "one of the greatest legacy the government can give us is to grant us a chance to able to understand the many developmental programmes on the radio that can give us civic education, and help us with health issues and government policies". They said there was peace, unity and a willingness to work and the people needed the support of government and charitable NGOs to help them fight poverty, hunger, disease and illiteracy. The celebrations attracted chiefs and people from many Bimoba communities, including those from Togo and Burkina Faso The people were entertained to drumming and dancing of the kontar dance of the Bimobas.