The Yagbonwura, chiefs and people of the Gonja kingdom in the Savannah region have on Sunday, 16th October, 2022 climaxed this year’s Yagbon Damba at the forecourt of the Jakpa palace in Damongo.
Damba festival in the Gonja Kingdom is singled out as one of the most significant traditional festivals celebrated in the Kingdom. It is revered and held in high esteem by the people of the Kingdom and epitomizes the beautiful culture and tradition of the Kingdom.
This great festival is celebrated to commemorate the splendid birth of Prophet Mohammed S.A.W. through whom Islam
was propagated to the World.
The Registrar of the Gonja Traditional council and Secretary to the King of Gonjaland, Mr. Abutu Kapori in a speech read on behalf of the king charged the chiefs and people of the kingdom to keep every bit of the tradition in perspective and promote it to the rest of the World explaining that, one’s culture and tradition define his roots
and identity quoting Mahatma Gandhi, an anti-colonial nationalist and political ethicist who in one of his philosophical beliefs said “a nation’s culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people”
which he said best matches for the theme of this year’s Yagbon Grand Damba dubbed “Preserving Our Cultural Heritage Through Social Cohesion; the Role of Chiefs and Citizens of Savannah Region”.
On prevailing peace in the kingdom, the king said
there is every indication of strong social cohesion and human relationship building in the Savannah Region which he said is enhancing the forward march of the infant Savannah Region but will remain an
untold history if the social cohesion is not strengthened and therefore called on the chieftaincy institution, politicians, the various youth associations and Civil Society Organizations to collaborate to create a serene environment for absolute peace in the region.
He commended every citizen of the Savannah Region for their contributions in maintaining
peace in the Region especially the Eminent Chiefs Committee and admonished that the efforts must still continue to find absolute peace in order to woo investors into the Region.
The Yagbonwura also mentioned that, education is the most powerful weapon through which one can use to change the World but was sad to note that the leadership of the Savannah Region is not happy about the abysmal performance of students recorded few years ago in the Savannah Region and called on stakeholders to help in olving the situation which has become a nightmare to every parent in the Region.
He further added that, the current abysmal performance is a wakeup call to every stakeholder in the region to collectively contribute their quota towards building the lost glories of education in the Region.
The King congratulated the pupils of Tarbiat E/A Primary School at Daboya in the North Gonja District for making Savannah Region proud for emerging forth out of the 16 Regions during the annual National Reading Competition held in Accra in September this year.
He also congratulated the MP for Damongo and Minister for Lands and Natural Resources Lawyer, Abu Jinapor for initiating the Best Teacher Award Scheme which benevolent initiative deserves to be adopted in the sister constituencies in the Savannah Region.
He called for all hands on deck in the
area of education in order to change the narrative.
He concluded by expressing his profound appreciation to the MP for Damongo constituency, Managing Director Ghana Water Company Ltd, the Regional Minister, MDCEs,
Paramount chiefs, custodians of the Gonja culture and tradition, sister tribes, businessmen and women, the creative arts industry of the region, the security apparatus, heads of departments, various committees, the media, sons and daughters of the Region and all lovers of tradition for gracing this year’s grand Yagbon Damba durbar.
The Savannah regional Minister, Hon. Saeed Muhazu Jibril in a speech thanked the various chiefs of the Gonja kingdom for participating in this year’s Damba festival, an act the Minister said is an indication that the region and Gonjaland is smoking the peace pipe and that, the people are seeing themselves as one people.
He added that, he is very optimistic that the five member committee of eminent chiefs that was carefully selected under the auspices of the Yagbonwura will work towards finding lasting solutions to all the chieftaincy and Lands disputes within the Gonja Traditional area especially in areas with land disputes that has to do with other regional coordinating councils .
He urged the Savannah Regional House of Chiefs and the 5 eminent chiefs to step in to solve the problems of land disputes amicably devoid of any violence.
Hon. Muhazu also used the event to appealed to the sons and daughters of the savannah region to market what the region has to the rest of the world especially in the areas of Agriculture, tourism and culture particularly the Gonja smock in order to help foster the development of the region.
The Member of parliament and Minister for Lands and Natural resources who was the Special Guest of Honour expressed his gratitude to the Yagbonwura and the chiefs and people of Gonjaland for coming to grace the grand durbar of the 2022 Yagbon Damba which for him, is in line with the customs and traditions of the Gonja kingdom and pleaded with Sons and daughters from the kingdom including politicians to see themselves as one people from the area and remain united for the progress and development of the area.
The Minister extended the felicitations of the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo – Addo and the NPP government to the people of the Gonjaland and explained that, the government of the New patriotic party is doing it’s best to bring the much needed accelerated development to the people of the savannah region, pointing out particularly to the Damongo water project which the MP and Minister said was on course and will soon commence.
He also mentioned that, the government is constructing a 100kms road through Bunjai in the East Gonja municipality to Yapei in the central Gonja District of the savannah region so as to connect the region together in it’s road network.
The 2022 yagbon Damba started on Friday, the 14th of October,2022 with the arrival of chiefs was climaxed on Sunday, the 16th of October, 2022 with a grand durbar with the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Lawyer Abu Jinapor,
Hon. Saeed Muhazu Jibril, the Savannah Regional Minister, the Council of State member for Savannah Region, MDCEs in the Savannah Region,
Heads of Departments, Paramount Chiefs of the Gonja Kingdom, Chiefs and Queen Mothers and host of other people gracing the occasion.
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