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President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has charged elders of the Tema Traditional Council to ensure that procedures for finding a successor to the late Tema Mantse, Nii Adjei Krakue II, will be without acrimony, dissent and histrionics.
He said they must ensure that the late chief did not only get a befitting funeral and exit but also pay him the best tribute to his memory by ensuring a smooth and efficient transfer to his successor in a united manner that would not give rise to any controversy.

“Too often, the replacement of chiefs becomes issues in our country; issues that we can do without because, invariably, they also involve security matters. We are seeing some emerging problems at Osu; the Ga State itself continues to have problems, and there are several other incidents in the Greater Accra Region, all of which do not inure to the benefit of stability, peace and the welfare of the people of this region.

“So this is one appeal I will make to you,” President Akufo-Addo told the elders of Tema.

Tema Mantse

The President gave the charge when the elders of the Tema Traditional Council called on him at the Jubilee House in Accra yesterday to formally announce the death of the Tema Mantse.

Nii Krakue, who was enstooled in December 1992, died on February 22, 2020, a few days after his 70th birthday, after battling an ailment.

The President expressed his deepest condolences to members of the traditional council and the people of Tema on the passing of the chief and said in spite of their "ups and downs", the late chief was his friend with whom he had a good relationship.

Nii Krakue was very deeply concerned about the welfare of Tema and its inhabitants, the President said, and expressed regret at his passing.

He added that the government would wait for the funeral arrangements and expressed the hope that with the intermediation of the Metropolitan Chief Executive for Tema, the climax of the funeral would fit his (President’s) diary.

“Out of respect for the late chief and the people of Tema and the personal relationship I had with him, I would like to be present. I asked the Tema MCE to liaise with the traditional council to come to a compromise on the appropriate date for a final farewell to be given to the chief,” President Akufo-Addo said.

He gave an assurance that should the elders encounter any issues with the funeral, they should not hesitate to get in touch with the Tema MCE or the government to ensure the funeral was held without a hitch.

Initial rites

The Mankralo and acting President of the Tema Traditional Council said the elders had to perform a few initial funeral rites, hence the delay in formally calling on the President to announce the death of the chief.

He said preparations were advanced for the final funeral rites, and that they saw the need to first inform President Akufo-Addo before they went public.