Asante Congress denies publication in "Ghanaian Voice"

Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 24 March '99

The Asante Congress and Asante Kotoko Society (AKS) have denied that they are supporting a particular candidate to occupy the Golden Stool following the death of the late Asantehene, Otumfuo Opoku Ware the second. In a statement jointly signed by Dr Baffour Asafo-Adjei, Chairman of the Asante Congress Organising Committee and Mr M.Y. Asare-Bediako, President of AKS and issued in Kumasi on Wednesday, they said the "Ghanaian Voice" on the front page of the March 22-28 edition of the newspaper alleged that the two organisations were supporting one of the candidates for the Golden Stool. The statement explained that the Congress is made up of Asantes throughout the world therefore it would be ridiculous to give its support to any of the candidates who are all royals of the stool. It said it has faith in the traditional and constitutional procedures by which an Asantehene is nominated, elected and installed and re- affirms its faith and confidence in the time honoured procedures which served the best interest of Asantes throughout the ages. "The Congress wish that Nananom will use these procedures and give Asanteman a successor who will meet the hopes and aspirations of Asanteman and Ghana as a whole", it added. The Congress appealed to the mass media to contact its secretariat for clarifications and verifications on any issue pertaining to it and its component groups such as AKS, Asante Students Union Alumni (ASUA) and others. "This way the Congress and the media would be saved from the embarrassment that invariably comes with the publication of such falsehoods", the statement added.