The family of the late Sawla-Tuna-Kalba MP in the Savannah Region, Joseph Trumah Bayel, has appealed to President John Dramani Mahama to urgently intervene in a dispute they say is preventing his burial.

According to the family, the Chief of Tuna, Tunawura Daniel Mahama Amantana, is demanding payment of GH¢944,955 for allegedly incurred costs in a long-running court case between him and the late MP before the body can be laid to rest in the Tuna enclave.

The appeal was made during a press conference at Dakompilayir, the late MP’s hometown, a suburb of Tuna in the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District.

Family spokesperson and Dakompilayir branch chairman of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), Atluor Issahaku, said the family was relying on the longstanding relationship between the late MP and President Mahama to help resolve the matter peacefully.

“We as a family remember, are aware of the friendship between the two of you to the extent that when his [late MP’s] mother died, you [President] attended her funeral to console your friend.

“But today, he himself is dead, and the date has been set for his burial, only to be told by the chief of Tuna that no and demanded that we [family] pay a fine, else he will not allow us to bury our kinsman,” Mr Issahaku said.

He added: “We, the family and elders of Dakompilayiri, need you to complete your love for our brother, father and late MP by settling the dust preventing his peaceful burial.”

The family also commended President Mahama for supporting the late MP’s medical treatment in Accra before his death, but said developments after his passing had brought embarrassment to both the family and the NDC.

“The situation has opened the door for our opponent, the New Patriotic Party [NPP], to make a mockery of us.

“They [NPP] are even laughing at us, that every now and then we say NDC and John Mahama, and that here we are stranded and cannot even bury our brother who served the same NDC,” he stated.

Mr Joseph Trumah Bayel passed away in August 2025. He entered Parliament in 1993 on the NDC ticket and served until 2005.

Background to the Dispute

According to the family, the late MP purchased a two-acre parcel of land in the early 1990s, developed it with a residential building, planted mango and orange trees, and drilled a borehole, all of which were protected by an iron fence.

However, in 2020, the then Chief of Tuna, the late Isaac Dramani, who was later elevated to the Mandari skin, allegedly ordered the destruction of the fence and other property on the land.

The family rejected claims that the late MP had encouraged his kinsmen to withhold farm produce from chiefs, describing such accusations as false.

“We can say that the pretext for the destruction of the fence was that our kinsman did not own the entirety of the land he had fenced and possessed for thirty years, and so the late Mandariwura tore down the fence and attempted to sell the land,” the family stated.

They further alleged that truckloads of sea sand were later dumped on the land and reported to the police, but no action was taken.

The late MP subsequently sued the assigns of the late chief at the Wa High Court. According to the family, during proceedings, the late Chief Dramani admitted to ordering the destruction. The case remains pending, although both principal parties are now deceased.

Chief Confirms Demand

When contacted by JoyNews, the Chief of Tuna, Tunawura Daniel Mahama Amantana, confirmed the demand, insisting the correct figure was GHS944,955, not GHS100,000 as earlier reported.

“Frankly, what [fine] you heard is very true, and there’s nothing wrong with it. The amount is even more than what they told you because I just finished calculating it before you arrived. It’s rather nine hundred and forty-four thousand, nine hundred and fifty-five cedis [GH¢944,955].

“So, when I became the chief here, I inherited the skin with the problem the late MP had with my predecessor, which ended in court in Wa,” he said.

The chief said his relationship with the late MP had been cordial, even before he ascended the skin.

“Because the late MP happened to be my personal friend, sometimes I was even afraid our people would think I was a traitor because I sat with him and told him, my dear brother, forget about this piece of land, but I did not succeed, and that was before I became Tunawura,” he explained.

He added that he had attended court proceedings in Wa for three years since becoming chief, while his predecessor had done so for two years, incurring costs.

“So, when the family members came here, I told them the total amount of GH¢99,955 and apart from that, they should try and see the chief of Bole, but all these have not worked up to now,” he maintained.

Land Inspection

JoyNews later visited the disputed land and observed an uncompleted four-bedroom building, economic trees and a borehole.