The Techiman Traditional Council has refuted allegations that some irate people of Techiman in the Bono East Region attacked the convoy of the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.
The Asantehene was reportedly returning from Nkoranza after attending the burial and funeral rites of the late Nana Dudaa Kani, the Paramount Queen mother of the Nkoranza Traditional Area when the said attack happened at Techiman, the regional capital.
Reacting to a video of the attack that has gone viral on social media, at a news conference in Techiman, Nana Takyi Firi II, the Krontihene (sub-chief) and Acting President of the Techiman Traditional Council said, “The Techiman and Asante are one people,” describing the attack on the Asantehene’s convoy as untrue.
“Nana Techimanhene and Otumfou are both from the Oyoko clan and see themselves as brothers. They usually visit and call each other when there is the need to do so”, he stated, and expressed unhappiness about the development, saying, “There is no way and justification that the people of Techiman will attack the Asantehene”
“Even when Otumfou’s son, the late Okatakyie Agyemang Kudom IV, the Nkoranzamanhene joined his ancestors, Otumfou notified Oseadeeyo Akumfi Ameyaw IV, Techimanhene and later paid a courtesy call on the Techiman Traditional Council ahead of his arrival at Nkoranza to attend the funeral of his departed son”, Nana Firi II stated.
“Even when Otumfuo decided to go to Nkoarnza for the funeral on Monday, December 2, 2024, he [Otumfou] informed the Techimanhene, expressing his willingness to pay a courtesy call on him before proceeding to Nkoranza”, he added.
Nana Firi II said it was unfortunate that “Nana Techimanhene has travelled but left a message to his elders to assist Otumfuo to go through all the traditional rites of the land to enable him to get to the funeral ground of the late Nana Nkoranzahemaa”.
“Customary rites were even performed at Techiman Tanoso where a sheep was slaughtered and a libation poured at the River Tano on the Techiman-Kumasi highway.
On Techiman-Nkoranza road, a similar rite was performed at Fiaso for Otumfuo to cross the River Fia to Nkoranza,” he explained.
“We wish to state that, Techiman as a cosmopolitan town does not discriminate against anybody irrespective of one’s ethnicity, race, religion, sex,” he stated and called on social media users to be responsible for the content they posted online.
“The chieftaincy institution is a noble and revered institution,” Nana Firi II stated, saying “There is no bad blood between the people of Techiman and Asantes since we are one people of a common destiny”.
