The chiefs of Agotime Traditional Area are appealing to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to urgently open the country’s Eastern boarders to enable their kinsmen in Togo attend the final funeral rites of their late Paramount Chief – Nene Nuer Keteku III.
The final funeral rites which commenced on Friday, November 12, 2021 and will span 10 days.
According to Elvis Ativoe, Coordinator, Central Planning Committee for the funeral, it will be climaxed with a burial service on Saturday, November 20, 2021, to be followed by a grand durbar of Chiefs and of queen mothers.
In an interview with journalists in Accra over the weekend, Mr Ativoe noted that the Agotime Traditional Area stretches between Ghana and Togo and that it is their expectation that chiefs from both countries would actively participate in the funeral.
Mr Ativoe said the continual closure of the boarders and the restrictions on movements across the two countries would make it difficult for the chiefs and people from Togo to bid farewell to the late paramount chief.
“This has become a major cause of concern to the whole traditional area, hence the need for this passionate appeal,” Mr Ativoe said, adding, “we want to draw the attention of government to the long overdue closure of our boarders that would allow for the free flow of human traffic between our two countries.”
He said the people of Agotime Traditional Area lived together with their counterparts in Togo as brothers but because of the restrictions, the people were unable to co-exist peacefully as in the past.
“We want to appeal to the government to consider opening the boarders in the earliest possible time so that these important traditional rites are not thwarted because of the closure of boarders”.
According to him, the Agotime Traditional Area has over 37 towns and villages and over 20 of these towns are in the Republic of Togo over which the late Konor ruled as Overlord.
“Therefore on a very important occasion like this it is very important that the people on the other side of the boarder are also able to join their brothers on the Ghanaian side so that together and collectively we can bid farewell to our great and illustrious Chief, Nene Nuer Keteku III”
Asked whether the call for the opening of the boarders was not coming in too late in view of the fact that the final funeral rites is starting just next week, Mr. Ativoe said the people of Agotime Traditional Area were aware that the government was a listening one, and that President Nana Akufo-Addo himself having hailed from a traditional home, and one who took issues of tradition and customs seriously, would listen to their passionate appeal.
GNA