The Bolewura, Sarfo Kutuge Feso I, plans to rename about 700 settler communities in the Bole Traditional Area with indigenous Gonja names. The Birifor Youth Association in the Savannah Region has joined calls by some youth organisations in the Region to petition the government, national security, and civil society organisations, among others, against these plans.
In order to avoid what they described as potential future land litigation, among other things, Bolewura Sarfo Kutuge Feso I and his sub-chiefs decided to rename all settler communities in the Bole and Sawla-Tuna-Kalba Districts that are under the control of the Bole Traditional Council on Monday, July 4th, 2022.
The Birifor Youth Association, in response, condemned the action as an impending security danger and a draconian decree by the Chief to take away their identity, historical legacy, and cultural heritage in a statement signed by its National President, Vivien Ne-ormah Nyoni.
The Association is the second organisation in the region to question the intentions behind the upcoming exercise by the Bolewura and the Bole Traditional Council.
The Association claims that the exercise by the Chief of Bole is seen by the whole Birifor population as a significant act of provocation with a strong potential to disturb the peace in the Traditional Area.
According to the Association, there is a recording that is presently making the rounds that claims the entire exercise is directed at the Birifors. The Birifors in the mentioned region have learned of a letter and an audio tape that are circulating. The Bolewura's explicit declaration that the Birifors were his target group in the audio recording has particularly incensed the Birifors, according to the statement.
The Association also stated that as Birifor people living in the Traditional Area, the measure will restrict their civil freedoms and constitutional rights.
The statement also stated that the Association will not yield to the Chief of Bole's negative and evil intentions, which they claimed would be harmful to the progress and ambitions of the Birifors.
The fact that the Birifor Community settlements have been in the Bole Traditional Areas for all of recorded time, with the Birifor's names representing their identity, historical background, and cultural legacy, is what is most remarkable about this absolute and archaic order.
"We admire the Bole Traditional Authority because they live in harmony with other ethnic groups, such as the Gonjas, and because they uphold the law. Why would the Bolewura announce such a new event that would only take place in the Bole Traditional Area? The Bolewura just seeks to persecute and stifle the admirable goals of the Birifor people, which are mostly focused on development, it was emphasised in the statement.
All those who value peace in the region have been reassured by the Association that they would continue to work for peace.
The statement ended, "We are human beings like any other, residing in the region and protected by the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana as Citizens."
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