Okyenhene Osagyefuo Nana Amoatia Ofori Panin has responded to the allegations raised by the Omanhene of New Juaben Traditional Area, Daasebre Prof. (Emeritus) Oti Boateng concerning the restructuring of the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs (ERHC).

According to legal aides of the Okyenhene, the substance of Daasebre Oti Boateng’s protestations are mere misrepresentations and unfounded.

Daasebre Oti Boateng had earlier written a series of letters of protestation questioning the attempt to exclude from the restructured ERHC the New Juaben Traditional Area.

According to him, it was suspicious how the President of the House had selected various paramount and divisional chiefs and sidelined his area.

However, in the Okyenhene’s reply, he denied those claims.

According to the Okyenhene, Daasebre Oti Boateng’s oblivion concerning the new legislation in the ERHC is due to his seven-year long absence from meetings.

The Okyenhene’s reply read: “We are not surprised by your lack of knowledge of these important matters of fact, because, indeed, you have failed or refused to attend meetings of the Regional House of Chiefs for the past seven (7) years (although your allowances for attendance is unfailingly paid and received).

“Your failure to either attend meetings of the ERHC for the past seven years or conduct an enquiry on the issues raised in your letters explains the wild but unfounded allegations contained in your letters.”

The Okyenhene also stated that despite Daasebre Oti Boateng not attending meetings, the Minister of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Kofi Dzamesi had gone to the New Juaben palace to explain the new legislation, however, that too had proven futile as Daasebre Oti Boateng had rejected the proposed legislation on grounds that Divisional Chiefs should not be allowed in the ERHC.

“Your failure or refusal to attend meetings notwithstanding, the Hon. Minister for Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mr. Kofi Dzamesi requested to pay homage to you and explain the all-encompassing need to reform the composition of the ERHC, and request you to nominate divisional chiefs from the New Juaben Traditional Area to the ERHC.

“Your response to the Hon. Minister on the subject matter of discussions was reported to the House. In the spirit of preservation of amity and cordiality of relations among chiefs in the Eastern Region, we would keep most of the points made by you confidential, save to say that you stiffly opposed the idea of Divisional Chiefs sitting in the ERHC.” The letter read.

Thus for “peddling such falsehood in the public domain” the Okyenhene has requested that Daasebre Oti Boateng render an unqualified apology to both the ERHC and the NHC.

“Page 2 (paragraph D) of your letter of 14^th July, 2020 cautions about the seriousness of “lying to the National House of Chiefs”. I hope you apply this caution to yourself in the matter of the clearly proven false allegations contained in the 2 letters authored by you and do the needful by rendering an unqualified apology to both the ERHC and the NHC for peddling such falsehood in the public domain since July, 2020.”