Abudu Family Rejects GBA Appointee

Members of the Abudu Gate to the Ya-Skin of the Dagbon Traditional Area have requested the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) to revoke its selection of Alhaji Ibrahim Mahama as its representative to the Northern Region Lands Commission.

A statement issued in Accra and signed by Huudu Issah Zico, member of the family, described the appointment as an error saying: "Alhaji Mahama is not only one of the accused persons in the Yendi crisis, but also has a vested interest in the Dagbon chieftaincy and land issues".

The statement said the nomination of Alhaji Mahama by the GBA to serve on the Commission was a sign of double standards because the Association had not long ago urged the government to relieve some pro-Abudu men from their

positions in the national security network as a result of their alleged involvement in the Yendi crisis.

It explained that Alhaji Mahama, a former Vice-Presidential candidate of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) in the last general election, was a prominent member of the Andani Gate and was also faced with similar accusations.

The statement said despite that the "GBA went ahead and appointed him to serve in an institution considered as most the important aspect of the chieftaincy institution in Dagbon. This we saw as a clear sign of double standards on the part of the GBA".

Land, the statement said, was an integral aspect of chieftaincy and its control and acquisition process accounted for the increased conflicts in most parts of Dagbon.

"It is in this light that we are calling on the GBA to acknowledge this obvious act of commission and maintain a level of neutrality required, by revoking the appointment of Alhaji Mahama until the final determination that led to the crisis in Yendi are unearthed", the statement said.