Opinions of Thursday, 4 January 2024

Columnist: Kwadwo Ye-large

Focusing on the development of the Bono and Bono East regions; the role of the chiefs and people

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Bonoman Institute wishes the good people of Bono and Bono East Regions as well as all Bono People throughout Ghana and every part of the world a very Happy and Prosperous New Year.

We pray for productive years ahead as we entreat you all as usual to work hard towards making the world a better place.

Bonoman Institute is a registered organization that has the mission to be a resource hub that works to ensure the absolute development of the Bono people through documentation, preservation, and promotion of their culture, history, and heritage as well as highlight and enhance their potential to contribute to local, regional, national and global economic development.

In pursuit of our mission, Bonoman Institute delves into issues of concern that can influence the development of the Bono Regions. This release captures a few issues of higher concern the Institute sees as necessary to initiate, enhance, and sustain the development of the Bono Regions.

1. Promotion of peace and unity amongst Bono Chiefs is an irreplaceable mission that we pray our chiefs and elders and political elites should as a matter of urgency address. We cannot develop as a region when we have so many unresolved disputes.

2. Intra-chieftaincy discord is another traitor to our progress as regions. The many unsolved disputes within some traditional authorities are one of the agents that push our development far behind. Suspicious environment lacks the right energy to have the needed cohesion for development as a group of people.

3. To ensure economic development of the Bono Regions, there is an urgent need for actions that promote enterprise and business development. This will surely position the regions for trade and other economic activities to boost in order to bring about development of the people. We pray our chiefs to lead in this regard by liaising with politicians and most importantly their natives who have risen in business to achieve this important feat.

4. Revisiting the Bonokyempem council is another means that we believe can be used to ensure coordination in our growth and development. The Bonokyempem council should not be replaced by the Regional House of Chiefs but rather further modified to meet our contemporary developmental and traditional needs.

5. The people of the Bono Regions are being admonished to come out of their shells to defy all odds to make a difference. There are examples of several others that have evolved from the Bono Regions to make huge strides. The time to come out in numbers to do exploits is now, there is no other time.

6. Development of the Bono Twi dialect is yet another important element that is required to bring about the needed development and identity of the people of the Bono Regions; this, the Bonoman Institute through the Bono Twi Project is going to implement to enhance the development of the regions.

7. Protection of our natural resources from unscrupulous people who selfishly steal or find ways to own them should be a matter of grave concern to us.

8. Cross-regional conflicts with other chiefs in Ghana are an emerging issue that has to be addressed for the sake of peace and tranquillity in our contemporary Ghana. This we plead the chiefs work with all needed institutions of state and the international community.

9. There should be conscious efforts led by the chiefs of the Bono Regions to industrialize the regions. This will certainly enhance employment promotion as well as harness the region’s agricultural capacity through an enhanced value chain to improve the economic values of the people, particularly farmers and the youths.

10. Escalating issues related to chieftaincy issues, particularly through some chiefs is what we plead on the national security and the government in general for the sake of posterity and development in the Bono Regions to objectively address. It has the potential to draw these regions back in development.

Again, armed robbery on the highways and cattle herdsmen attacks on farmers as well as the use of their cattle to destroy others' farms has to be dealt with as emergency issues.

The Bonoman Institute has come to stay and shall endeavour to work with all stakeholders toward the development of the region and its people. We shall strive to solicit and harness the potential of our human resources within Ghana and beyond our shores to consciously bring development to the people of the Bono Regions to affect Ghana as a whole.

We assure all Bono People of our utmost commitment and sacrifice towards the realization of our objective to redeem and promote the image, development, and well-being of the Bono people within and beyond the shores of Ghana.

In conclusion, we herein acknowledge and appreciate the media outlets that are promoting the Bono Twi dialect through their programmes and activities and further add that other radio stations and media houses should do their best to emulate.

Our time to evolve and develop is now. Let us all with one accord, promote the holistic development of the Bono People.