The Paramount Chief of the Bole Traditional Area, Bolewura Sarfo KutugeFeso (l ), has commended the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor, for his boldness and determination to save the environment and reverse the deterioration.
The Chief made the recommendation when the sector minister paid a courtesy call on him at his palace on Saturday October 9, 2021 as part of his working visit to the five Northern regions.
Bolewura seized the opportunity to congratulate him in his victory as a Member of Parliament for the Damongo constituency in the 2020 Parliamentary and President elections and also as the minister for Lands and Natural Resources.
He added that the minister is a beacon of hope for the youth of Gonja Kingdom, for that matter savannah region at large.
“The Bole Traditional Council under my leadership have ordered the removal of all mining equipments from the Black Volta and currently as we speak there is no single mining equipment on our water bodies as far as this Traditional Area is concerned”, the chief said.
Bolewura also informed the minister about a land dispute between the Gonjas and Bandas, which the Banda people persistently continue to issue threats and illegal claim of ownership of certain lands of Gonja Kingdom (Dokochina) at a press briefing during a meeting held at Banda Ahekrom of the Bono Region.
According to him some parts of the Bole Traditional Area has been demarcated and placed in the then Brong Ahafo Region following Dr. Kwame Nkrumah post-independence re-demarcation drive. Even though the community belong politically to the Bono Region, traditionally the community is part of the Bole Traditional Area like Goasu, Wenchi Kedeleso, Kportor, Kawampe, Babato and others find themselves in Bono Region, they owe allegiance to the Asantehene and the Yagbonwura respectively.
He said it is imperative that the following communities around the Black Volta namely: Dokochina, Sindi (Dollar, Accra), Dablakro, Gbabiape, sigipe which are historically and traditionally under Bole Paramountcy since time immemorial be added to Bole District Politically.
“These communities have in recent times have being under needless threats by the Banda Traditional Council in making illegal claims for Dokochina and others since they are placed under the Bono Region Politically”, Bolewura stated.
The Chief stressed that both legal and traditional evidence available to his palace and the Gonja Traditional Council indicates that Banda Traditional Council do not and can never claim ownership of the aforementioned communities along the Black Volta.
He therefore urged the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources Lawyer Abu Jinapor and the government through the Savannah Regional Coordinating Council to as a matter of urgency add back these communities to the Bole District.
Speaking at the durbar, Hon. Lawyer Samuel Abu Jinapor noted that the bole district is a mining community and it is prudent for him as the sector minister to visit the community as part of his tour and also to engage with miners in the community and it’s environs.
Hon. Lawyer Samuel Abu Jinapor called on the Bolewura and his traditional council to assist him in achieving the tasked assigned to him by the president to curb activities irresponsible mining which the Bolewura and his traditional council are already doing but requested them to do better and that the government and ministry are to support in this light.
He assured the chiefs and the people of Bole that he is going to make sure that mining is regulated to ensure that traditional rulers and the people benefit from the gold deposit in the district in form royalties.
He called for unity among the people of the area and assured the youth that government is on course to ensure that they are employed and all and sundry should rally their support behind the NPP administration and promised to join the people in the area in celebrating this year’s Damba festival scheduled on the 12th to 14th of November, 2021.
The Minister, is embarking on a 6-day working tour of 5 regions in the north which began on Monday, October 4, 2021,and expected to end on Saturday, 9th October 2021.
The 5 regions he is scheduled to visit on this 6-day tour are; the Northern, Upper West, Upper East, Savannah, and the North East regions.
The Minister has already undertaken similar exercises in the Ashanti, Western, Western North, Eastern, and Central Regions with the intent to obtain unflinching support from the chiefs and people in the respective regions to curb illegal mining and restore the nation’s forest cover.
Source: yagbonradioonline/Issah Zakaria
