By Godfred A. Polkuu
Bolgatanga, Oct. 30, GNA – A 187-page book about the first King of Dagara in the Upper West Region and the circumstances surrounding the Paramount Skin of the Nandom Traditional Area has been launched in Bolgatanga, the Upper East Regional capital.
The book, titled “The Royal History of Nandom: The untold story (1887-2022),” seeks to give balanced information on the Nandom Paramount Skin, which caught the sympathy of the ‘court of public opinion’ over the years.
The book, authored by Mr Henry Naab Fatchu, chronicled the Nandom Chieftaincy from 1887 to 2022.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) after the launch, the Author said the lack of proper documentations on chieftaincy issues, coupled with poor record keeping among some institutions inspired him to write the book.
He said with information from oral accounts from Royal Family legends in Nandom, archival and Court documents, newspaper reports, official correspondences among others, the book chronicled all the regimes of the Paramount Chiefs of the area.
Mr Fatchu, also a former Parliamentary Candidate for the People’s National Convention (PNC) for the then Lawra/Nandom Constituency in the 2008 Presidential and Parliamentary elections, said the book showcased circumstances that led to the enskinment of Paramount Chiefs in Nandom devoid of biases.
That, he said would afford readers, especially key stakeholders the opportunity to critically analyze the Paramount Skin for informed decisions.
The Author emphasized that chieftaincy was universally accepted, and had come to stay, saying “What needs to be done has to do with the succession plans. What we need to look at is the conflict aspect. So that we will have a conflict-free process in the selection of Chiefs.”
Mr Fatchu insisted that the traditional institutions should be allowed to select chiefs, “When the elders decide on somebody as a Chief, we should all accept it in good faith. You may disagree with the decision of the elders, but in the interest of peace, progress and development we should accept and move on.”
He expressed concern about interferences of some elites in the chieftaincy institution in Nandom, and partly blamed chieftaincy conflicts on such interferences, “If we can avoid that and allow the elders to do their work, we are better off, as a people.”
Mr Fatchu noted that although conflicts offered the opportunity for aggrieved parties to air their views, it must be minimized, devoid of violence, and must be done with a positive mindset to propel development.
Dr Niagia Santuah, the Head of Department of the Culture and Development Studies at the Miller Institute for Transdisciplinary and Development Studies, Bolgatanga, who reviewed the book, said “The book details on how politics and economics play in chieftaincy succession.
“The first Chief, Naa Chiir I was wealthy, very well respected, much-travelled, a successful merchant, a hunter, farmer with many wives and children. He could feed multitudes, and the people said he could represent them because he could solve problems.
“So right from the word go, wealth is a strong determinant in your ability to lead people. Then when colonialism kicked in, we had the colonial influence over traditional issues. So they needed to be connected to the colonial administration to be recognized and protected,” he said.
He explained that the trend advanced into pre-independence, with the Northern People’s Party, which was basically a Party formed by the Chiefs in Northern Ghana to advance Northern interest, “So there was politics in the Chieftaincy institution right from the beginning.”
Dr Santuah further indicated that the book highlighted the roles of discussions, consensus and trade-off in the Nandom Paramountcy over the years for the sake of peace.
He said the Author tried to outline a process of arriving at acceptable candidates to become the Nandom Naa, “That there is a traditional, a Royal Family made up of elders who have the reputation and the traditional leadership roles to determine who becomes the Nandom Naa.
“If we accept that roadmap, that will be a good way forward,” Dr Santuah said.
Mr Isaac Dasoberi, a representative of the Nandom Naa at the launch, said there were two other books on the Nandom Chieftaincy issue published earlier, but noted that those books concentrated on the conflict resolution mechanisms among others.
He said the book was an addition to the available literature on the Nandom Chieftaincy which created the opportunity for the Traditional Council to look at the similarities and fish out the differences among the books, and with further research by the sons and daughters of Nandom in academia they could help resolve the differences which resulted in conflicts.
GNA