Regional News of Tuesday, 25 November 2003

Source: --

Kedem wants State to recognise suffering of people of Southern Volta

Accra, Nov 24, GNA - Mr Kosi Kedem, Member of Parliament (MP)for Hohoe South, on Monday prayed the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) to ask the State of Ghana to recognised the suffering the people of the Southern Volta went through following the making of that area part of the country after independence and apologise.

He mentioned Krachi, Jasikan, Kpando and Ho as areas affected, and said the people had rejected and voted against the making of the Southern Volta as part of the British colony in a Plebiscite in 1956.

Mr Kedem said despite the outcome, the then British government manipulated the Plebiscite results and made it appear as if the people of Southern Volta accepted to be made part of British colony.

This he said was against United Nations agreement that the Southern Volta should become a sovereign state.

Mr Kedem said after Ghana's independence in 1957, Southern Volta did not become sovereign but rather it was made part of Ghana resulting in the killings suffering, exiling of some of the people and also the loss of property.

He said since independence, succeeding governments suspected the people of Southern Volta of taking the benefits of development projects to another country coupled with the dispute of the nationality of the people, the area had seen very little progress.