The Nkusukum Traditional Council has performed traditional rites, including the pouring of libation, to symbolically banish the Member of Parliament for Mfantseman, Dr Ebenezer Arhin, from setting foot on any land under the jurisdiction of the council over what it describes as persistent acts of disrespect toward the traditional authority.
At a press conference attended by chiefs and council members dressed in traditional black and red attire, the Omanhen of the Nkusukum Traditional Area, Okogyeman Okese Essandoh IX, announced the decision, stating that the council had invoked the gods of the land to take action against the legislator.
According to the Omanhen, the dispute stems from the implementation of the government’s 24-Hour Economy Market Project. He explained that Dr Arhin and the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) initially visited the Nkusukum Traditional Council to inform the chiefs that Mankessim Market had been selected for the project. The delegation subsequently inspected the proposed site together with consultants and contractors.
However, Okogyeman Essandoh alleged that barely two weeks after the inspection, the MP invited the traditional council to a sod-cutting ceremony only for the chiefs to discover through the invitation letter that the project site had been relocated without prior consultation.
He described the development as a blatant disregard for the authority of the traditional council.
“If the Mfantseman MP is only going to continue his political journey, then there is a bridge for him to cross, and the name of the bridge is the bridge of the Nkusukum land,” the Omanhen declared, underscoring the council’s dissatisfaction with the MP’s conduct.
The Omanhen further claimed that the MP’s actions amounted to “total disrespect” for the chiefs and expressed satisfaction that some market women reportedly protested during the sod-cutting ceremony by pouring powder on the MP.
Despite the decision to banish Dr Arhin, Okogyeman Essandoh emphasised that the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) remains welcome in the Nkusukum Traditional Area at any time, provided visits do not involve the Mfantseman MP.
Addressing another matter, the Omanhen dismissed allegations that he had collaborated with the Minister for Roads and Highways and President John Dramani Mahama to divert the Mankessim–Accra road project. He insisted that neither he nor the Nkusukum Traditional Council had any involvement in decisions regarding the road alignment.
