Bawku, Ghana – April 15, 2025
The Mamprugu Youth Association (MAYA) has strongly condemned what it describes as a “baseless and inflammatory” demand by some Kusasi groups for the arrest of the Bawku Naba, Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre.
IN A FIERY press conference held earlier today, the group denounced the call as both legally unsound and dangerously provocative, warning that such actions risk destabilizing the fragile peace in the Bawku Traditional Area.
Citing a previous Court of Appeal decision which quashed an arrest warrant for Naa Sheriga as unlawful, the group insisted that any further attempts to target the enskinned chief would constitute “a gross injustice and a direct assault on the rule of law.”
According to MAYA, the Bawku Naba is the legitimate traditional ruler of Bawku, enskinned by the Nayiri, the overlord of Mamprugu, who has historically exercised the authority to install chiefs in the area since the early 18th century. They emphasized that any effort to remove or arrest him amounts to exiling a man from his ancestral land.
“This is not just about chieftaincy – it is about fundamental human rights, legality and peace,” the Association stated.
MAYA also criticized the Kusasi youth for what they claim is a calculated pattern of lawlessness, citing the destruction of state property and recent attacks on police installations and officers as a coordinated strategy to intimidate state actors and manipulate the ongoing peace process.
With national mediation efforts currently underway under the leadership of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, MAYA urged all parties to commit to sincerity, restraint, and respect for traditional processes.
“The Kusasi ultimatum to arrest the Bawku Naba is not only illegal but a betrayal of the peace process championed by the Asantehene. It is an affront to justice and a direct attempt to derail mediation,” MAYA declared.
The Association called on government, law enforcement and mediators to reject the demand unequivocally, reaffirming their readiness to uphold peace – but not at the cost of truth and justice.
Source: Nationaltyme.com
