Accra, March 26, GNA - A delegation of chiefs from the Tumu Traditional Area in the Upper West Region on Thursday informed President John Evans Atta Mills of the death of the Paramount Chief, Kuoro Gilbert Badzoe Kanton. Kuoro Kanton, 78, who passed away last month, had four wives with 25 children. He has since been buried but funeral rites have been scheduled for April 4 to 7 at Tumu.

The delegation which was at the Castle, Osu, in Accra, also congratulated President Mills on his election as President. Col. George Luri Bayorpor, spokesperson for the delegation led the chiefs to present the customary two bottles of schnapps to President Mills for the announcement. The interest of the late Kuoro Kanton, a professional teacher and administrator, was mainly in the field of education. As a son of a traditional ruler, the late chief had the privilege of being trained by the colonial masters to have formal education to interpret messages correctly from the Europeans to traditional rulers in the palace. He used his educational background to promote the establishment of the Tumu Training College, where he later served as bursar, dwelling on his skill as treasurer of the Regional House of Chiefs.

He also had a stint with the defunct Pioneer Tobacco Company. "Education was his primary concern. He stood for progress and development in the Sissala District," Col. Bayorpor said. President Mills accepted the congratulatory message, and said he met the late paramount chief during the rounds prior to the 2008 election.

He conveyed the deepest condolences to the chiefs and people of the Sissala Traditional Area, adding that, they had lost not just a leader, but also a leader who regarded service as a matter of concern. President Mills gave the assurance that Government would be represented at the funeral.