Politics and the Bawku conflict (1)
INTRODUCTION
Since the outbreak of violence in November 2021 between Kusasis and Mamprusis over the Bawku Skin, lots of perceptions have been formed and passed around within various (official) circles. There are those who believe that Mamprusis ruled Bawku for centuries before the arrival of the British in the late 19th century. Others believe that it was Kwame Nkrumah who first meddled into the Bawku affairs and sowed seeds for the present conflict. And yet there are those who believe that while there is a Bawku Naba in the person of Naba Asigri Abugrago Azoka II, his enskinment may not have followed relevant traditions and customs and that his gazetting might have been a mistake. In this article, I will shed light on these issues for those interested in the politics around the Bawku conflict. What is documented here is all verifiable from official public sources such as the British National Archives and Ghana’s Public Records and Archives Administration Department (PRAAD), in Accra.
Claims of Mamprusi rule in Bawku
A common refrain by Bawku Mamprusis is that they have been chiefs of Bawku for centuries before the arrival of the British in the late 19th century. The challenge is that the only evidence they seem to have consist of a string of names written on a mud-wall titled “Original Chiefs of Bawku.” Not a single date or period of reign is provided for any of the “chiefs” for verification. And not a single independent source has been produced to corroborate the claims. All fair-minded people, scholars and legal experts cannot but take such claims with a pinch of salt.
What we know from scholarly sources is that all those who are referred to by Mamprusis as “chiefs” in the Kusasi area prior to the arrival of the British were community heads of Mamprusi settlers. They presided over their fellow settlers just as we have Dagomba Chief or Mamprusi Chief in Kumasi today overseeing the affairs of their tribemates. None of them was a territorial chief ruling over an area with Kusasis under their jurisdiction. This fact is testified to in several colonial reports, and in scholarly works, including an essay by A. A. Illiasu, a native of Walewale, titled “The Establishment of British Administration and Mamprugu: 1898-1937,” in Transactions of the Historical Society of Ghana, published in June 1975.
In their quest for chiefs for their Indirect Rule, the British upon arrival elevated the Mamprusi community heads to territorial chiefs, including the one in Bawku, who was junior to some of his counterparts. The British also appointed Kusasi Tendanas as territorial chiefs who along with the elevated Mamprusi heads served as Canton chiefs. By the early 1930s, there were a total of 19 Canton chiefs: five Mamprusi and 14 Kusasis. At this point, all the Canton chiefs were equals with none subjected to another. In the words of J. K. G. Syme, the colonial District Commissioner of the area at the time, the canton chiefs were “allowed to be absolutely independent of everybody else. The Chief of Bawku has perhaps been more in the limelight than the others, but he never had any authority over them.” The Chief of Bawku was in the “limelight” because Bawku had become the colonial capital for the Kusasi District as the area came to be known.
Mamprusi rule of Kusasis in theory started with the appointment of the Nayiri, Na Mahama Wubga, as Paramount Chief of the Northeast Province by the colonial Provincial Commissioner, C. H. Armitage, on April 14, 1912 in Navrongo. The province included the Kusasi, Frafra, Kasenna-Nankanni, Builsa and Mamprusi areas. This political appointment however had very little impact on the ground. Nayiri was a nominal Paramount Chief outside of Mamprugu proper. In March 1931, Syme convened a conference of the 19 Canton chiefs to select a Tribal or Head Chief of Kusasis. The conference ended in “the unanimous election” of the then Mamprusi Chief in Bawku, Naa Abuguri, as the first Mamprusi ruler over Kusasis. Mamprusi rule or colonialism over Kusasis therefore really kicked-in with the 1931 election. It was never by conquest, and it lasted for about 25 years, from 1931/32 to 1956/7 when Kusasis elected one of their own as chief.
The alleged role of Nkrumah
Another widely accepted perception that has even found its way into official circles is the alleged meddling of Nkrumah in the Bawku chieftaincy affairs. This allegation has been repeated by Bawku Mamprusis and even by scholars, especially after the 1966 coup, without a shred of evidence. After the demise of Bawku Naba Saa Wuni Bugri, Bawku Mamprusis trooped to Nalerigu in 1957 for the enskinment of a new Bawku Naba. Confusion erupted following an unpopular choice by the Nayiri, and in a fit of rage the late chief ’s family carried the symbol of authority of the Bawku Skin (kpanjeok), to Abugrago Azoka, saying Kusasis should take back the chieftaincy as the original owners of the land. Upon receiving the insignia, Kusasis gathered in full strength at Bawku on 6th June 1957, elected and enskinned Abugrago Azoka I as Bawku Naba and Tribal Chief of the Kusasi Area in accordance with Kusasi traditions and customs.
Committee of Enquiry
With two rival chiefs in Bawku and tensions rising, the colonial Governor-General, Lord Listowel, instituted a three-member Committee of Enquiry made of S. D. Opoku-Afari (Chairman), Nana Yaw Agyeman Badu I – Dormaa Hene (Member), and Lure Kanton III – Tumu Koro (Member). The committee was to enquire whether Abugrago Azoka I was properly “elected or appointed and installed as Chief of the Kusasi Area.” At the end of its work, the Committee submitted that Kusasis are the indigenes and owners of Bawku and the surrounding areas, and concluded that “Abugurago Azoka has been customarily elected and installed the Chief of the Kusasi Area.” Cabinet met over the report on February 25, 1958 and advised the Governor-General, through the Minister of Local Government, to change the “Chief of Kusasi Area” in the Committee’s report, to “Chief of Bawku,” and issued a whitepaper on the report.
1958 Court Rulings
The Mamprusis, led by Mumuni Bawumia (father of current Vice President), sued the Committee of Enquiry and the Minister of Local Government at the High Court in Accra. The lawsuit was specifically about the change of designation made by the Governor-General from “Chief of Kusasi Area” in the Committee’s report to “Chief of Bawku” in the whitepaper. They argued that the change made by the Governor-General was not in the terms of reference for the Committee, and that the Governor-General had no powers to make the change. On May 24, 1958, the High Court presided over by Justice N. A. Ollennu, ruled in favour of the Mamprusis, arguing that the offices of “Chief of Kusasi Area” and “Chief of Bawku” are mutually exclusive.
The Committee and Ministry of Local Government challenged the ruling at the Court of Appeal, arguing that Bawku is the chief town and administrative capital of the Kusasi area, and that from 1932, the Chief of Bawku has been recognized as the Chief of the Kusasi area. They argued that the Chief of Bawku and the Chief of Kusasi area are interchangeable. On 21st October 1958, the Court of Appeal ruled: “clearly there has been no excess of jurisdiction either on the part of the Committee or the Governor-General…The Governor-General’s decision is hereby restored.” In other words, the Court of Appeal upheld the Committee report and government whitepaper that Azoka I was customarily elected and installed as Chief of Bawku and Chief of Kusasi Area.
The conference ended in “the unanimous election” of the then Mamprusi Chief in Bawku, Naa Abuguri, as the first Mamprusi ruler over Kusasis.