Ho, May 29, GNA - Mr Joseph Amenowode, Volta Regional Minister, on Friday urged the chiefs and people of Adaklu Traditional Area to join hands with the Assembly for development.

Mr Amenowode said new districts and electoral areas could only be created based on certain statistics, including population, derived from authorized surveys. The Minister said this when a second group of traditional rulers from the area, led by the paramount chief, Togbe Gbogbi Atsa V, called on him.

The chiefs and people had sought to boycott proceedings of the Assembly and had demanded their own district in protest against the naming of Agortime-Kpetoe as the capital for the newly created Adaklu district.

They had preferred that Adaklu-Waya be made the capital. Mr Amenowode said he was stunned by having to meet two delegations of chiefs from the same area separately and called for unity among them to encourage development. He said government could facilitate settlement of feuds between chiefs but would not interfere in their issues. Togbe Atsa said the differences between his followers and other traditional rulers the over choice of the capital should not be "misconstrued to be a chieftaincy dispute" and that he remained the rightful paramount chief of the area. He alleged that the Adaklu traditional area had been sidelined in the appointment of key political figures for the district. Togbe Atsa called for the creation of more electoral areas in the district. He also called for the rehabilitation of some vital roads in the area. They included Akoete-Waya-Mafi-Kumase, Tsrefe-Waya-Ziope and Ho-Kodzobi-Have-Helekpe feeder roads. Togbe Atsa said landowners were ready to release land for development projects. Last Tuesday Togbe Agbobada IV, Senior Divisional Chief of the Adaklu Traditional Area, led a group of chiefs from the area to call on Mr Amenowode with similar demands. 29 May 09