Sunyanimanhemaa’s funeral: Lawless traditional warriors brutalising residents

Some of warriors painted their faces in black, while others wore masks

The pre-burial funeral and interment rites of Sunyanimanhemaa (paramount queen) the late Nana Yaa Nyamaa Poduo II, have been characterised with extreme fear, as traditional warriors ran amok and terrorized unsuspecting residents in the ‘city’ of Sunyani.

The deceased died on Thursday, August 1, 2019 at the Regional Hospital in Sunyani. She was 64.

Residents have condemned the attacks by the “lawless” traditional warriors, who are sighted at most places in the Sunyani town, and appealed to the Police to beef up security presence in the Bono regional capital to help bring the situation under control.

The warriors dressed in ancient traditional war regalia, wielded offensive instruments and fired musketries intermittently to scare residents and on-lookers.

Some of them have painted their faces in black, while others wore masks.

They nearly lynched a private photographer in front of the Cocoa House building on Tuesday, February 25, when he attempted to video a street procession by some of the chief mourners in the town.

The incident happened around 1600 hours in the presence of some Police personnel and full glare of this reporter.

Two separate incidents also happened at the Victoria Park, near the Sunyani Old Palace, where the warriors attacked and subjected two young men to severe beatings.

Ghana News Agency (GNA) was told the warriors attacked the unsuspecting victims because nobody was allowed to walk around the old palace area without wearing mourning cloth.

As at the time of filing this report there was absolute calm in the Sunyani town, while many shops at the Central Business District were closed.

Throbbing traditional music and dirges have filled the airwaves, as hundreds of mourners from all walks of life arrived in the town.

Though the Ghana Education Service (GES) has ordered all basic schools in the Municipality to close, on Thursday, February 27 and Friday, February 28, many school children have already been kept indoors at home.