Public announcement made by the Paramount Chief of Ngleshie Alata Traditional Area in James Town in Accra following the destoolment of Caretaker Chief at Tetegu in the Ga South Municipality, Nii Kofi Kumah I, is creating tension between relatives of the embattled chief and the elders of Tetegu and Aplaku Stools in the Ga State.
The Ngleshie Alata Traditional Area in James Town is the traditional authority that presides over Tetegu and Aplaku Stools in the Ga South Municipality of the Greater Accra Region.
While relatives and close associates of Nii Kumah I insist some of the chieftaincy destoolment charges levelled against their chief are “selective and twisted” to pursue a certain agenda, the elders of Tetegu and Aplaku Stools have discounted these claims, noting that the decision taken by them to destool Nii Kumah I was based on available facts of “gross disrespect.”
Addressing a crowded press conference at the weekend at Aplaku in Accra to set the records straight on the final destoolment of Nii Kumah I, Wulomo of Aplaku, Numo Tetteh Nartey II, the allodial owners of Tetegu lands, reaffirmed that Nii Kumah l has breached the customary and traditional oath (Section 60) of the Chieftaincy Declaration Act.
That, he stressed, accounted for his destoolment as caretaker chief of Tetegu by the kingmakers and elders of Aplaku Royal Stool.
Numo Tetteh Nartey II, who doubles as the acting Chief of Aplaku Royal Stool, minced no words when he warned the general public and government agencies not to transact any business with Nii Kumah I, particularly on issues relating to lands and properties in Tetegu.
He made reference to a letter dated Friday, March 10, 2017 signed by the Stool Secretary of Ngleshie Alata Traditional Area, Nii Akwawei Bonso III, with instructions from Obrempong Nii Kojo Ababio V, informing Nii Kumah I to disown himself as Tetegu Mantse with immediate effect.
The two-page destoolment letter, which is in possession of Today, was copied to the Greater Accra Regional Commander of Ghana Police Service and Weija Divisional Police Commander in the Ga State for notification of the action taken by Obrempong Nii Kojo Ababio V and his elders on Nii Kumah I.
The letter was also copied to the Tetegu Queen-mother, Naa Kafui Kuwornu; Principal Elder of Tetegu, Mr. Elias Awuku Dormenyo Vorvornu; Tetegu Asafoatse, Mr. Happy Akukpah; Tetegu Linguist, Livingstone Atukpah; Tetegu Stool Elders, Amuzu Atukpah, and Gershon Tamekloe; Aplaku Wulomo, Numo Teeteh Nartey; Weku Nukpa, Nii Tettey Mensah, and Nii Ahene, Aplaku Linguist.
Numo Tetteh Nartey II went on to state that the decision to destool the Tetegu chief would go a long way to end the agitations by the feuding factions claiming ownership over the Tetegu Stool.
He however, hinted that an arrangement was underway to enstool a new caretaker chief to unite the people of Tetegu township, explaining that Nii Kumah I was destooled on the grounds that he has been attacking Obrempong Nii Kojo Ababio V and elders of the entire Tetegu and Aplaku townships which fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of James Town Mantse.
“I wish to emphasise that Nii Kofi Kumah I who proclaims that he is still the Tetegu Mantse after he had officially been destooled by Obrempong Nii Kojo Ababio V recently that the general public is once again being informed that Nii Kofi Kumah’s destoolment by our Obrempong is still in force and that anyone who deals with the destooled care taker chief of Tetegu does so at their risk.
Flanked by elders and kingmakers of Aplaku Royal Stool, Numo Tetteh Nartey II revealed that based on five destoolment charges levelled against Nii Kumah I, the accredited caretaker elders of Tetegu on September 23, 2015 passed a vote of no confidence against Nii Kumah I for “gross disrespect” to elders appointed to support him to administer Tetegu community.
He pointed out that that ever since Nii Kumah I was installed as the Caretaker Chief of Tetegu, he has over the years made persistent efforts to use police officers to harass Tetegu Queen-mother, Naa Kafui Kuwornu I, and some accredited elders of Tetegu by fabricating false allegations that his elders were planning to kill him.
That, he pointed out, has created disunity in the area.
“For the past two years, precisely in February 2013, Kofi Kumah defied orders of Obrempong Nii Kojo Ababio to organise a unity durbar to address major concerns for the development of Tetegu,” he noted.
According to the Aplaku Wulomo, Nii Kumah I has failed to call meetings on matters concerning the town as well as also failed to honour invitations of the youth and the entire community.
He accused Nii Kumah I of being in league with Tare Development Properties Company Limited to take Tetegu township from the Ngleshie Alata Traditional Council.
He fumed that “in the said dubious agreement between Nii Kofi Kumah and the company, lands earmarked for the construction of bridge over the Densu River, schools, police station, lorry park, road, market centre and football park promised by the company have not been done.”
When reached by Today Nii Kumah I expressed worry over the destoolment charges preferred against him and assured of his readiness to organise a press conference on Tuesday (March 28, 2017) to tell his side of the story to the general public.
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