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Leadership of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Bawku Central constituency have expressed their utmost disappointment over how government and President Akufo-Addo is handling the Bawku chieftaincy dispute.

The leadership, made up of all the constituency executives, polling station executives and electoral area coordinators say the President’s approach to the impasse is making the party unpopular in the Upper East region especially Bawku central.

They have directed the blame on President Akufo-Addo and other government establishments on the increasing tension in the area.

READ ALSO: NE/R: Youth hit streets to protest military attempt to arrest new Bawku chief as tension rises at Walewale, Nalerigu 

At a press conference at the party office in Bawku Friday, February 24, 2023, the Communications Officer, Nurudeen Gumah, said members of the party are of different tribes within the traditional area and the party does not encourage divisive tribalism and the chieftaincy dispute has affected members of the party, thus making the party unpopular.

The constituency executives have appealed to the feuding groups to put the guns down and resort to the appropriate channel to address the matter.

The constituency executives noted that since the conflict resurfaced in November 2021, non-Mamprusis were killed simply because they belong to the NPP yet the leadership of the party both regional and national level did not respond to the issue.

“Members of our party who are non-Mamprusis were killed simply because they were affiliated to the party, notably Mma Laale, Obesery and many others who are polling station executives and party sympathisers. The party leadership at the regional and national level did not respond on that too,” they said.

They also condemned those dragging the Vice President into the fracas.

“We would like to condemn all those trying to ruin the presidential ambition of His Excellency the Vice President of the republic of Ghana, by dragging his good name into the Bawku chieftaincy matter. Chieftaincy issues are purely traditional and not political, so we entreat all and sundry to leave that to the traditional authorities,” they added.

They added also that, “It’s a known fact that, majority of the votes the party gets in Bawku is coming from the Mamprusis and their sympathisers in the Bawku township and beyond. In 2020 general elections we gave Nana Akufo-Addo more than 20,000 votes to win the election, and out of this number, the Mamprusis gave the party more than 18,000 votes.”

“We want to request the national executives to tell his Excellency that, his posture towards the chieftaincy dispute is hurting the party at the constituency considering the fact that, majority of the people in Bawku who voted to make him president are Mamprusis and a party to the chieftaincy dispute.

“We want to find out whether its because he will be leaving office very soon, that he doesn’t care about the fortunes of the party any longer? We appeal to him to treat the chieftaincy dispute as a pure traditional matter and refer the matter to eminent traditional authorities to handle it rather than making pronouncements on it,” they asked.

READ ALSO: Resolving Bawku conflict: Queen Mothers Foundation calls for truce

By Mohammed Rabiu Tanko|UW/R|Onuaonline.com