Tuesday, September 2, 2008

ASANTEMAN TO HELP BA IN EDUCATION (PAGE 30)

THE Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has announced a package to send part of the World Bank grant accruing to the Asanteman Council to the Brong Ahafo Region for development projects.
He has consequently asked members of the council to form a committee with the Brong Ahafo Regional Co-ordinating Council to plan how the money will be utilised.
Announcing this at the Asanteman Council meeting at the Manhyia Palace last Thursday, Otumfuo Osei Tutu said projects to be undertaken in the Brong Ahafo Region would include water, school and health facilities.
He said education had become an important part of modern chieftaincy, stressing that any chief who failed to recognise this could not claim to be a good chief.
He said nobody should construe Asanteman to mean the Ashanti Region, explaining that all areas in the Brong Ahafo Region and other parts of the country that fall under his authority also constituted part of Asanteman.
He consequently gave the assurance that he would make sure they had a fair share of development from the Asanteman Council.
The Asantehene also indicated that he would ensure peace prevailed in those areas to ensure progress and development.
He gave a hint of the decision to celebrate 10 years of his enstoolment next year.
Otumfuo said the occasion would be used to reflect on how Asanteman had progressed within the period and how to forge ahead as a people to accelerate development.
“The 10 years should focus on how far we as a people have gone in our development and not for drumming and dancing,” Otumfuo said to applause from his subjects.
As part of preparation for the grand celebration, Otumfuo Osei Tutu said outstanding enstoolment matters before the Council would be resolved before the end of the year.
He mentioned some of the areas as Jamasi, Kumawu, Esumeja and Ejisu, all in the Ashanti Region, and Offuman in the Brong Ahafo Region.
He tasked the committees working on the cases to ensure that they completed their work by October, so that the reports would be placed before him for the respective paramount chiefs to be elected and sworn before him to give way for the celebration.
The Asantehene also indicated that the Council would look at how there arose two chiefs in the Tano Subin area in the Brong Ahafo Region, which falls under his authority.
He stated that financial power should never be the yardstick for the election of a chief in Asanteman, stressing that “only qualified royals should ascend stools in my domain”.

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