The chiefs and people of Edina Traditional Area in the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) municipality have climaxed the celebration of their annual Bakatue Festival with a colourful durbar of chiefs.
The elaborate and open celebration of the festival was suspended three years ago following the COVID-19 restriction imposed by the government to check the spread of the virus in the country.
The Paramount Chief of the Edina Traditional Area, Nana KwadwoConduah VI, in an address at the durbar, commended the individuals and organisations for the support they offered to the traditional council to ensure the success of the festival.
He indicated that the organisation of festivals was a business venture and called on residents to strategically position themselves to support subsequent festivals, due to the immense benefits of festivals to the socio-economic development of any society.
He commended the government for initiating the construction of a fishing harbour at Elmina, adding that former President John AgyekumKufuor cut a sod for work to commence on the construction of a fishing harbour at Elmina but that project was halted due to change in the leadership of the country.
Nana Conduah VI called for the payment of royalties from revenue generated from the Elmina Castle, and hinted that the chiefs and people would initiate a process to ensure that the appropriate agencies addressed their concerns.
He also called on the government to ensure the provision of a bus for the Edinaman Senior High School (SHS), saying that the school for some years now had not benefited from the provision of such a facility extended to SHSs across the country.
He called on the government to review its stands on the illegal trans-shipment “Saiko” since the practice had been contributing towards improving the standard of living in fishing communities.
The Municipal Chief Executive for KEEA, EboAppiah, in an address, noted that the festival was one of the flagship programmes of the municipality due to its benefits to the local economy and the Central Region in general.
The Member of Parliament (MP) for KEEA, Samuel Atta Mills, expressed concern about the rate of teenage pregnancy in the area and urged residents to work towards improving the fortunes of the area.
The MP called for support for people who were displaced by the recent flood in Elmina and other communities within the municipality.
The Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dr Ibrahim Mohamed Awal, in an address read on his behalf, expressed delight about the display of rich cultural and traditional heritage at the festival which he said portrayed the unique African traditions and values.
He noted that Elmina played one of the key roles in the nation’s tourism sector due to the history of the chiefs and people of the area.
“This makes it unique and strengthens the country’s tourism sector and those of us in the sector do not take it for granted,” he said.
Dr Awal further called on the residents in the area to come up with innovative ideas in packaging and branding on the food and other items from the area in order to create employment opportunities for the youth.
FROM DAVID O. YARBOI-TETTEH, ELMINA
