That Dormaa predates Ashanti Stool can't be correct - Historian to Dormaahene

Historian and lawyer, Anokye Frimpong has disputed a recent claim that the Dormaa Stool existed centuries before the Ashanti Stool came into being.

He described the claim made the Dormaahene, Oseadeeyo Agyemang Badu II as incorrect and one that would be hard to defend.

In an exclusive interview with GhanaWeb speaking to the historical account and current status of the Ashanti Stool and its occupant, Anokye Frimpong gave traced how both Stools came into being.

"If anybody says that the Dormaa Stool existed long before the Ashanti Stool, I believe that it is not easy to accept it, it is not correct," he submitted.

He recounted how two wars defined the relations between the Ashantis and the Dormaas, the latter winning the first before Asanteman under Osei Tutu I routed the Dormaas and forced them to flee present-day Suntreso to Gyaaman, in present-day Ivory Coast.

In October this year, the Dormaahene responded to claims made by Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, that it took an Asantehene to elevate the Dormaa stool to a paramountcy.

On the matter of how Dormaa attained paramountcy, the historian clarified further that it could not have been through an Asantehene given the power dynamics that existed between the dominant Ashanti kingdom and states under it in a confederacy.

The Dormaahene labelled Otumfuo's paramountcy elevation claim as false and alleged that the Dormaa stool had existed for hundreds of years before the Asantehene stool, making it impossible for an Asantehene to have elevated the then Dormaahene to a paramount chief.

The Dormaahene emphasized the importance of addressing this issue to prevent the distortion of Dormaa's history by the Asantehene. He stated, "I would speak to this issue because if I don’t, I would not be able to sleep… most people think that I am the one who causes the issue (between myself and the Asantehene). Some are even saying that if I don’t take time, I might cause a war. But if you are correcting your history, is it about fighting?"

He further clarified, "I want to tell every Ghanaian that we, the people of Aduana, are not from the Ashanti Kingdom. It is never true; it is never true. Otumfuo Osei Tutu II is the leader of the Ashantis, we beg him if he does not know history he should not talk. How can someone from Oyoko talk about the history of the people from Aduana?"

The Dormaahene asserted the historical precedence of the Dormaa stool over the Ashanti stool, stating, "I want to place it on record with any contradiction that the stool of the people of Aduana in Dormaa existed 300 years before that of the Ashantis was established. So if there is to be an elevation, is it not us who are to elevate them?"



He stressed that he meant no disrespect to Ashantis but would respond if their leader continuously made incorrect claims about the people of Dormaa.