GIVE PEACE A CHANCE

REPORTS from Dagbon indicate that disagreement is raging in the area between the Andani and the Abudu gates over a document purported to be circulating in Yendi.
The said document, titled: “Final Peace Agreement”, is said to have been issued by the Committee of Eminent Chiefs and it is alleged to have agitated both gates, albeit in different ways.
The DAILY GRAPHIC is of the view that at this time when preparations are underway for the performance of the funeral of the late Naa Mahamadu Abdulai IV, this current state of agitation does not augur well for the peace that we all crave for Dagbon and its people.
Reports of the disagreement over the document in question say that the main bones of contention between the two gates are the venue for the performance of Naa Abdulai’s funeral and the position of the Regent of the Dagbon State.
If our memory serves us right, then we recall that one of the key issues arrived at during a meeting of the eminent chiefs in Kumasi on March 30, 2006, which was signed by representatives of both gates, was that “since Naa Mahamadu died before Naa Yakubu Andani, his funeral should be performed first”.
That being the case, we find it difficult to appreciate why the current document, which is a follow-up to the first road map to peace, should generate such tension and agitation.
On the question of who should be the Regent of Dagbon, the first road map to peace document made it clear that “The installation of the Regent of Ya-Naa Yakubu Andani takes precedence over the installation of Naa Abdulai’s Regent, since Naa Yakubu died in office and Dagbon custom did not contemplate a situation where there would be two sitting Ya-Naas or regents at the same time.”
Even in the “Final Peace Agreement”, which has generated so much ire of one faction, what was agreed upon in the first road map has been affirmed. Indeed, the regent of Naa Abdulai has been restrained from performing certain functions, including receiving official visitors on behalf of the Dagbon State, participating in festivities, including drumming, conferring any title on anyone whatsoever, etc.
It is even indicated that the stay of Naa Abdulai’s regent in the old palace “shall commence on December 22, 2007 and terminate on January 17, 2008”.
We have gone to this extent to quote portions of this new document because we think as far as intent and purpose are concerned, what it provides for are not different from the first road map to peace. We, therefore, do not understand the present agitation and the tension it has generated.
In the opinion of the DAILY GRAPHIC, the Dagbon chieftaincy issue has dragged on for far too long and we think it is high time the factions realised the need to move away from the entrenched positions they have taken to pave the way for lasting peace.
While acknowledging the efforts being made by the government to bring about the resolution of the crisis, we think it must do more to get all the factions to accept dialogue as the right path to peace.
To the feuding parties, we wish to remind them that they are the descendants of one person and, therefore, they should not dig in too deep in their antagonistic positions. After all, they both seek the welfare of Dagbon and its people and that welfare can come only if there is peace.
Let’s think, dream, speak and work for peace in Dagbon, since development comes on the wings of peace, not vice-versa.