Dagbon Peace Talks Resume

The Committee of eminent chiefs mediating the protracted chieftaincy dispute in Dagbon on Friday April, 4, 2014 resumed its sitting to continue with the road map to peace in Dagbon. The three eminent chiefs Committee headed by the Asantehene Otumfour Osei Tutu II met with representatives of the Abudu and the Andani Royals to chart a new path towards permanent reconciliation and restoration of peace in the Dagbon State. Other members of the Committee are the overlord of Gonjaland, Yagbonwura Tuntumba Bore Essa I and the overlord of the Mamprugu traditional area, the Nayiri, Naa-Bahigu Mahami Abdulai Sheriga. Citi News sources at the closed door meeting revealed that the Committee resolved that the funerals of the two late chiefs of Dagbon, Yaa-Naa Mahamadu Abdulai IV and Yaa-Naa Yakubu Andani II should be performed in accordance with the customs and traditions of Dagbon. Another sub Committee was tasked to estimate the cost involved in renovating the old Gbewaa Palace in Yendi where the two funerals are expected to be performed. It was suggested that the funeral of the late Yaa-Naa Mahamadu Abdulai IV, who died in 1988 should be performed first. It emerged that the two factions were happy with the latest development and pledged their cooperation with the Committee to restore Dagbon�s lost dignity after the death of the late Yaa-Naa Yakubu Andani II in 2002 in Yendi. Politics As enshrined in the 2008 campaign manifesto of the current governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), about forty suspects, including a former District Chief Executive for Yendi, Alhaji Mohammed Habib Tijani now the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Yendi were arrested in 2010 during a dawn swoop in Yendi by some security operatives. In partial fulfilment of the NDC campaign promise to find and prosecute the �killers� of the late Yaa-Naa Yakubu Andani II, fifteen of the suspects were tried by an Accra Fast Track High Court but they were acquitted and discharged on grounds of no substantial evidence of murder. At the peak of the 2008 general elections, the Committee which was constituted in 2002 and charged with the responsibility to amicably resolve the Dagbon conflict between the Abudus and Andanis suspended its sittings due to a boycott by the two factions. The Otumfour Osei Tutu on countless occasions cautioned against any interference from politicians and advised chieftaincy contractors in Dagbon to stay clear of the Dagbon conflict. The stalemate The feud between the Abudu and the Andani royals in Dagbon worsened after the death of the late overlord of Dagbon, Yaa-Naa Yakubu Andani II on March 27, 2002. Three days clashes between the two gates resulted in the death of the Dagbon Overlord and several others of his retinue. A constitutionally mandated Commission of Inquiry known as the Wuaku Commission was commissioned by then President John Agyekum Kufuor chaired by Justice I.N.K. Wuaku to unravel the mystery surrounding the Yaa-Naa�s death and make appropriate recommendations. The Commission among other recommendations suggested that the government needed to commit enough resources into finding lasting peace in Dagbon. President Mahama�s intervention Then Vice President John Dramani Mahama during a courtesy call on the Asantehene at Manhyia gave signals to the Committee that government was ready to support it to continue with the mediation process. Recently, President Mahama met with the Committee members as well as representatives of the Abudus and Andanis in Dagbon at the Peduase Lodge and reiterated the need for a resumption of the Committee�s sittings. In the spirit of reconciliation and peace restoration in Dagbon, the Committee has resumed its sitting with the anticipation to fast track the mediation process.