The Overlord of the Mamprugu Traditional Area, the Nayiri Naa Bohugu Mahami Abdulai Sheriga, has formally and unequivocally rejected a chieftaincy mediation report presented by the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, describing it as a “procedurally flawed” and “unilaterally imposed” document.
In a strongly-worded three-page statement dated Wednesday, December 17, 2025, and released by the Mamprugu Traditional Council, the Nayiri distanced himself and his people from the report, which contained recommendations on the protracted Bawku chieftaincy dispute presented to President John Dramani Mahama a day earlier.
The Nayiri stated that the so-called report does not reflect his engagements with the mediator and accused the process of abandoning the principles of mediation for adjudication. “I must state clearly and without reservation that the so-called report and recommendations do not reflect my engagements with Otumfuo, nor those of my duly constituted mediation team,” the Nayiri declared.
He outlined multiple reasons for the rejection, chief among them being that the mediator, who he said expressly described his role as that of a mediator and not an arbitrator, purported to “pass judgment and to prescribe measures for enforcement.” He argued this was inconsistent with the nature of mediation.
The Nayiri also revealed that no formal Terms of Reference were provided for the process, despite requests from his team.
He expressed profound disappointment that the parties were not allowed to comment on or respond to the conclusions before they were presented as a final report.
“To say that I feel betrayed, disappointed, and deeply hurt would be a grave understatement,” he wrote, alleging that the report was “replete with factual inaccuracies” and displayed a “manifest imbalance” favouring one side’s narrative while omitting Mamprugu’s case. The Overlord specifically denied a claim in the report that he agreed to the continued recognition of Aninchema as Bawku Naba, calling it “entirely false.”
