The President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has told the new Overlord of Dagbon, Ya-Naa Abubakari Mahama II, to do everything within his might to reconcile the Abudus and Andanis and restore peace and unity in his homeland.
To the President, he is of the firm belief that the new Ya-Naa will deliver as the few decisions he has made since he was selected by the oracle as the overlord of Dagbon clearly demonstrates his commitment to the peace and unity of the area.
“I know you are a man of peace and unity. I know from the few decisions you’ve taken since your selection of Ya-Naa, you are a man of reconciliation. I believe you are the man to reconcile Dagbon and plunge the age-old rivalry between the Abudus and Andanis and put Dagbon back on the path to sustain progress and prosperity”, he noted.
The President made this observation, Friday, January 25, 2019, at Yendi when addressing the people of Dagbon at the investiture ceremony of the new Overlord the area, Ya-Naa Abubakari Mahama II.
Speaking further on the occasion, the President called on all sons and daughters of Dagbon to unite behind the new Ya-Naa, expressing his confidence the Overlord of Dagbon will surely succeed with his mandate.
He pledged his government’s commitment and preparedness to assisting the new Ya-Naa to develop Dagbon, stressing.
Backing his words with action, President Akufo-Addo said Cabinet has just last week, approved a US$30million water supply project to replace the old and dilapidated water system in Yendi and its catchment area.
The agreement for the project, he added, is going to be submitted to Parliament for scrutiny and approval before it could be implemented.
The government, President Akufo-Addo noted, is further putting in place infrastructure that will allow them to exploit the iron deposits in Sheni, stressing that “on the back of that exploitation, we shall put a railway line to run from Accra through the Volta Region and the New Oti Region and through Yendi to Burkina Faso. Once these are completed, we anticipate Yendi becoming a hub for trade and commerce. This will bring considerable prosperity to the people of Yendi and help eradicate the poverty that gives the Northern Region the enviable title of being one of the poorest regions of our country”.
“If these developments are truly to be of relevance to you and are to make positive impacts in the lives of the people of Yendi and Dagbon, then there must be peace. Development cannot take place in an atmosphere of chaos and confusion”, he underscored.
The President while commending the Eminent Chiefs for the roadmap leading to restoring peace and unity in Dagbon made a personal pledge to assist the new Overlord of the area to succeed.
“Ya-Na, I make a commitment before you this day that I shall do everything within my power, as President of the Republic, to assist you to administer this state in an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity. As I have said before, I am neither an Abudu nor an Andani. I am an Abudani, a person who stands for unity, reconciliation and progress in Dagbon”, he noted.