The Pampaso Sub-Traditional Council in Kumasi has invoked curses on the Kumasi Mayor, Richard Ofori Agyemang Boadi, Ashanti Regional Police Commander DCOP Arthur Osei Akoto, and the Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak, over a disputed parcel of land the council claims belongs to the Pampaso Stool.
According to the Traditional Council, the land currently occupied by the Ashanti Regional Police Headquarters, Police Bungalows, the Children’s Hospital area and adjoining lands was originally released to the government by the Pampaso Chief for public use.
However, the council alleges that the Ashanti Regional Police Command has extended beyond the agreed boundaries and allocated part of the disputed land to a private developer for the construction of shops.
Speaking in an interview, Pampaso Gyaasehene, Nana Obeng Afriyie, said the council has no objection to lands legitimately allocated to the government but is opposed to what it describes as the unauthorised occupation of additional stool lands without the consent of the Pampaso Stool or the Asantehene.
He further alleged that the Ashanti Regional Police Commander and the Kumasi Mayor had previously been invited before the Traditional Council to provide evidence of the Police Service’s ownership of the disputed land but were unable to do so.
Nana Obeng Afriyie accused the officials of attempting to take over traditional lands with the backing of the Interior Minister, warning that the council would not allow what it described as an unlawful occupation of its ancestral property.
As part of their protest, the chiefs performed traditional rites at the disputed site, slaughtering a sheep and invoking curses against the three officials.
The council said the ritual was intended to summon the officials before their ancestral gods and seek spiritual consequences if they continue with what the chiefs describe as an illegal occupation of the land.
The Pampaso Traditional Council maintained that it would continue to use all available traditional and legal means to protect the disputed stool lands.
Meanwhile, the Kumasi Mayor, Richard Ofori Agyemang Boadi, has rejected allegations linking him to any unlawful takeover of the disputed land at Adum-Pampaso.
He said he played no role in the construction of the alleged police stores on the land and insisted that neither his office nor the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) approved any private commercial development at the site.
On the curses invoked against him, Mr Boadi said he was not worried because he had no involvement in the matter.
“I am not scared of their curse because I have no involvement in the construction of the police stores in Adum-Pampaso,” he stated.
The Mayor described the action as an affront to due process, arguing that traditional dispute resolution mechanisms should be pursued instead of invoking spiritual sanctions against public officials.
He added that he would report members of the Traditional Council to the Asantehene if he obtains evidence of the cursing ritual.
“I have not seen the video yet, and I will report members of the Adum-Pampaso Traditional Council who were involved to the Asantehene if I see video evidence of them cursing me,” he warned.
Efforts to obtain a response from the Ashanti Regional Police Command and the Interior Ministry were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.
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