The Paramount Chief of the Tolon Traditional Area, Major (Rtd) Sulemana Abubakari, has died days after the death of the Overlord of Dagbon, Yaa Naa Abubakari Mahama II.

The death of the Tolon Naa adds to the mourning in Dagbon following the passing of the Yaa Naa, whose death has brought the traditional kingdom together in grief.

The Tolon Naa was one of the senior chiefs in the Dagbon traditional hierarchy and served as the traditional defence chief of the Yaa Naa.

According to historical accounts of Dagbon’s traditional military structure, the Tolon Naa played a key role in mobilising warriors and defending the kingdom.

The late Tolon Naa was born in 1943 at Tali. He served as an escort officer to Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, and later retired as a Major of the Ghana Armed Forces.

He was the first son of the late Tolon Naa Alhassan Sulemana.

Following the death of his father, he became Regent of Tolon in 2001 and served in that capacity for 18 years.

He was enskinned as the substantive Tolon Naa in 2019 by the late Yaa Naa Abubakari Mahama II, after completing the funeral rites of his father.

His death comes shortly after that of the Yaa Naa, further deepening the sense of loss in the Dagbon Traditional Area.

The final rites for the late Tolon Naa are expected to be conducted in accordance with Islamic and Dagbon traditional customs, with details of the funeral arrangements to be announced by the appropriate traditional authorities.