The chiefs and people of Botoku Traditional Area, in the North Dayi District of the Volta Region, have appealed to the Judicial Committee of the Volta Region House of Chiefs (VRHCs) to speed up settlement of the chieftaincy dispute as to who is the rightful occupant of the paramount stool of Botoku Traditional Area.
According to the people, the delay in settling the dispute by the VRHC was affecting the development in the area, since there existed two paramount chiefs in the area, which did not promote development activities of the area.
The Mankralo of the Botoku Traditional Area, Togbe Atakora VI, who made the appeal, said the case which was pending before the VRHC remained a major development challenge to the people.
Togbe Atakora addressing journalists explained that out of the nine divisional chiefs of the Botoku Traditional Area, eight of them were in support of Togbega Tamtia VI as the legitimate paramount chief of Botoku Traditional Area, while one was also supporting Togbega Sei II as paramount chief of the area.
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He said the chiefs and people of Botoku were peace loving people and would never disturb the peace of the area, stressing that the chiefs were prepared to help the VRHC to address the dispute and ensure sanity in the area for the accelerated development.
Togbe Atakora again indicated that the delay in settling the dispute was a major concern to the residents, and assured that the chiefs and people would continue to maintain law and order, as they continued to protect the culture values of the people for the benefit of the present and future generations.
Meanwhile, an official of the VRHC, who pleaded anonymity, admitted that the Botoku chieftaincy dispute was pending before the house, and hearing of the case was progressing steadily.
The official, however, dismissed claims from the community that the VRHC was responsible for the delay of the Botoku chieftaincy dispute, saying the parties involved in the case were to be blamed for the delay, and urged them to cooperate with the VRHC to amicably settle the dispute.
According to the official, the parties were not cooperating with the house as they most of the time failed to comply with directives of the house to ensure swift settlement of the case, saying the parties mostly failed to bring their lawyers which affected the rapid settlement of the dispute.
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