The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has called on the government to decisively enforce existing laws that recognise Zugraan Naaba Asigri Abugrago Azoka II as the legitimate Chief of Bawku and head of the Kusasi Traditional Area, describing the position as final and non-negotiable.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, who chairs the special peace committee tasked with resolving the protracted Bawku chieftaincy conflict, made the call during the presentation of the committee’s final report to President John Dramani Mahama at the Jubilee House in Accra on Tuesday.
The recommendation, he said, represents the committee’s ultimate advice to the President on the long-running conflict between the Mamprisi and Kusasi factions, which has claimed numerous lives and stalled development in Bawku and surrounding communities.
Presenting the report, the Asantehene anchored the committee’s position on Ghana’s Constitution and the Supreme Court’s final judicial determination on the matter, rather than on further traditional negotiations or compromise.
He noted that the legal status of the Bawku chieftaincy was settled under the Restoration of Status of Chiefs Law, 1975 (NRCD 75), and later affirmed by the Supreme Court in 2003, a decision that remains binding on all persons and authorities.
Addressing the President and members of his delegation, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II stressed that no traditional authority is above the law.
“We chiefs, no matter how exalted, do not live above the Constitution of Ghana and the laws duly enacted and affirmed by the courts,” he stated.
He specifically called on the Nayiri, Naa Mahami Abdulai Sheriga, the Overlord of Mamprugu, who has in recent years sought to install a rival chief in Bawku, to accept the prevailing legal position.
“The final recommendation, Mr President, I recommend that my brother, the Nayiri, accept the laws as presently constituted, recognising Asigri Abugrago Azoka II as the chief of Bawku and head chief of the Kusasi traditional area,” the Asantehene said.
The report places the responsibility for restoring lasting peace squarely on the Executive arm of government, urging firm and immediate enforcement of the law against any actions that challenge the authority of the legally recognised Bawku Naaba.
According to the committee, decisive law enforcement is critical to breaking the cycle of violence that has plagued the Upper East Region, particularly since late 2021, resulting in the loss of hundreds of lives.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II emphasised that there should be no ambiguity in the state’s response, insisting that the rule of law must prevail.
“Accordingly, the laws which recognised Asigri Abugrago Azoka II must be enforced by the Government of the Republic of Ghana until changed in accordance with the 1992 Constitution or reviewed by the Supreme Court of Ghana,” he said.
The Bawku chieftaincy conflict, which has its roots in colonial-era administrative decisions that sought to impose the Mamprugu chieftaincy system over the indigenous Kusasi people, has evolved through successive political regimes.
Despite shifts in political and administrative approaches over the years, the Supreme Court’s 2003 ruling conclusively affirmed Naaba Asigri Abugrago Azoka II as the lawful Bawku Naaba, a decision that remains final and binding on all citizens, including traditional leaders.
