Some chiefs have, in the past, flexed their muscles, asserting what they believe is their authority by banning some Members of Parliament (MPs) from stepping foot in their jurisdiction for various offences.
The chiefs have most often imposed such punitive measures when they believe they have been disrespected by the politician, hence cracking the whip.
Under the current Fourth Republic, a few MPs have endured bans by traditional authorities for mainly disrespecting them.
The Member of Parliament for Aowin is the latest to suffer a ban from his chiefs.
GhanaWeb takes a look at four MPs who have had a ban imposed on them by their respective traditional authorities.
Aowin MP, Oscar Ofori Larbi
The Member of Parliament for Aowin, Oscar Ofori Larbi, is the latest legislator to have been banned by the Aowin Traditional Council from stepping foot on any Aowin land.
On February 9, 2025, the Council announced its bold step, having performed rituals to banish their MP, Oscar Ofori Larbi, from setting foot on any Aowin land.
This decision came after the Council accused the MP of disrespecting them by spreading alleged false stories against the paramount chief and some divisional chiefs in the Aowin Traditional Area.
The traditional council, led by the Chief of Omanpe, Nana Opong Payin III, conducted a ritual involving the slaughter of a sheep and the pouring of libation, calling upon the gods of the Aowin Traditional Area to deal with Larbi if he disobeys the ban.
Despite acknowledging Larbi’s election by the constituents, the council emphasized that his continuous disrespect left them no choice but to forbid him from entering their land.
The Aowin Traditional Council has been vocal about Larbi’s alleged involvement in illegal mining activities in the Tano Anwia Forest Reserve. Larbi has denied these allegations, claiming that he has taken steps to combat illegal mining in the area.
The Council has made it clear that they have no issues with the party or the government, and any government-led development projects should be channeled through the Regional Minister or their yet-to-be-named Municipal Chief Executive (MCE). The Tufuhene of Enchi, Nana Payin II, has accused the MP of abusing his political power to undermine the traditional authority of Nananom.
According to Nana Payin II, the MP believes his political influence allows him to disregard the cultural and traditional norms of Aowin and to operate with impunity on ancestral lands.
Atebubu/Amantim MP, Sanja Nanja
The Atebubu Traditional Council, in 2016, banned the Member of Parliament for Atebubu/Amantim, Sanja Nanja, from visiting the palace of the Omanhene effective April 3, 2016.
As part of the ban, the Omanhene and his sub-chiefs vowed not to attend any event organized by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government if the MP was present.
This was contained in a press release signed by the Omanhene, Nana Owusu Akyeaw Brempong I. The release stated that no subchief or odikro under the Atebubu Traditional Council should receive the MP as a guest or visit him.
“The MP is also banned from attending any funeral or social event organized within the jurisdiction of the Atebubu Traditional Area,” the statement said.
Reasons
The release explained that the council had taken this action against the MP for insulting the queen mother of the area during interviews on some FM stations in the country.
“By this conduct, the chiefs and people have arrived at these decisions against the MP. This is to avert any unforeseen happenings that may arise from the unguarded statement and ensure peace in the sociopolitical lives of the people.”
It added that the MP, after making the “unparliamentary” statement against the queen mother, had not shown any remorse nor rendered an apology for the invectives he had spewed on her.
“This we believe will serve as punishment and a deterrent to others who think like the MP.”
It will also help to caution those who want to undermine the integrity and freedom of the chieftaincy institution, the release added. It explained that it was a criminal offense to insult any chief or queen mother of the area.
Queenstar Maame Pokuah Sawyerr, Agona East MP
In 2020, following what the Chief of Agona Duakwa, Nana Kojo Amuakwa V, described as “disrespect” and “disgrace” to the Agona Duakwa stool, he banned the Member of Parliament (MP) for Agona East Constituency, Queenstar Maame Pokuah Sawyerr, from campaigning in the town and its surrounding communities.
The NDC MP, who was seeking re-election, was said to have allegedly paid some money to the chief for a development project that the chief failed to deliver. Nana Kojo Amuakwa V subsequently denied receiving any such money from the MP. He stated that all chiefs, sub-chiefs, and elders of Duakwa lands have been instructed to ensure that nobody allows the MP, her supporters, or agents to engage in political campaigns on their lands.
Press Conference
Addressing a press conference at his palace to announce the directive on October 1, 2020, which was well-attended by representatives from smaller towns and communities, Nana Amuakwa V noted that any chief or elder who flouts the directive would be traditionally sanctioned.
He said, “For the disgrace poured on my person, my ancestors, I swear by my oath of Nana Kojo Amoakwa’s Tuesday and hereby say that nobody should take this matter lightly and that anybody who goes against the directive must know the seriousness of the matter at hand.”
The chiefs and elders who attended the event were clad in red and black cloths, apparently to register their displeasure about the conduct of the NDC MP.
At the end, libation was poured, and a sheep was slaughtered to give traditional backing to the directive banning the MP from engaging in political activities at Agona Duakwa and its 41 smaller towns and villages.
Circumstances that led to the ban
Touching on the circumstances leading to the MP’s ban, Nana Amuakwa V said that in the first week of December 2019, Duakwaman was informed that Pokuah Sawyerr had made a public statement at Agona Duakwa that she gave an amount of GH¢20,000 and an additional GH¢2,000 to him [Nana Amuakwa] for the rehabilitation of the town’s refuse dumps.
He said that he had not received such money from the MP, and therefore the statement amounted to defamation of his character, which was duly reported to the elders at a meeting held on Saturday, December 7, 2019, at his palace.
The chief stated that after the meeting, Opanyin Kofi Mensah, an NDC executive member, was sent to inform the MP to appear before Duakwaman to discuss the matter. He added, “For over three months, she never honored the invitation, and by a letter dated March 23, 2020, which was copied to the NDC Constituency Chairman and the NDC Central Regional Chairman, we formally invited her to the palace on 15th April, 2020, for a discussion.”
“Per another letter dated 2nd May, 2020, we sent a reminder to the MP advising her that our meeting had been rescheduled to Saturday, 30th May, 2020, at exactly 4 pm,” he indicated.
He stressed that on Saturday, May 30, 2020, Pokuah Sawyerr sent her executives to him, but he told them that they had not offended him in any way and that they should return and inform the MP to come to the palace herself. He pointed out that on August 11, 2020, his lawyers wrote to the MP, delivered the letter at Parliament House, and a copy at her residence at Kwanyako, but Pokuah Sawyerr had not bothered to respond to the invitation.
The action was considered disrespectful.
Nana Amuakwa V stated further that Pokuah Sawyerr had shown gross disrespect to his person for refusing to respond to their several invitations and that she must understand that her comments amounted to defamation of character, which is a serious offense.
“She has disgraced me as a chief and, by extension, my ancestors and the people of Duakwa, and if she does not respect my position as a chief, I also cannot respect her as an MP,” Nana Amuakwa noted.
Ebenezer Kojo Kum, MP for Ahanta West
In 2020, the Upper Dixcove Traditional Council in the Ahanta West Municipal Assembly of the Western Region banned Member of Parliament Ebenezer Kojo Kum and his “boys” from engaging in any form of political activity, including campaigns and rallies “on their land” for denigrating the Omanhen, Nana Hema Dekyi.
The MP and his “boys” incurred the wrath of the Council after the “boys” subjected the Omanhen of Upper Dixcove to gross public ridicule.
In a leaked audio that circulated on social media platforms, some of the “boys” of the Ahanta West MP were heard using mean words to denigrate Nana Hema Dekyi. “… he has shown that he supports Kwesi Biney, and so anything he will say to discredit Kojo Kum, he will say it. … Now we are looking for an antidote to counter what that guy, what that small boy, has said,” one of the supporters of the MP is heard on one of the 18 pieces of audio that was in circulation.
The Paramount Chief of Upper Dixcove, at a ceremony, recognized the Paramount Chief of Lower Dixcove, Nana Kwesi Agyeman, for the role he played in getting Ahanta West a new hospital.
But the “boys” of the MP were not enthused, saying “the Paramount Chief had recognized an NDC Chief instead of giving the glory to the NPP MP Kojo Kum.”
At a meeting, the Upper Dixcove Traditional Council parried away any claims of open support to perceived political opponents of the MP and insisted that the supporters of the MP had “injured the stool of Upper Dixcove and therefore must assuage it.”
The Traditional Council, at the meeting, performed a ritual invoking curses on persons behind the audio and also banned the MP from campaigning on “their land.”
Chief of Alatakrom, Nana Assuah Nketiah, who performed the rituals, called on the gods of Upper Dixcove to deal with the MP and any of his supporters who set foot in the area to engage in any activity in the name of the party.
“We are calling on you, the gods to come to the aid of Nananom. Some young men of the New Patriotic Party who are part of the incumbent MP’s campaign team have rained insults on us. We are with this libation banning them from campaigning in any part of our land.”
The Aowin Traditional Council has performed rituals to banish the Member of Parliament for the Aowin constituency, Hon. Oscar Ofori Larbi, from setting foot on any Aowin land.
This measure comes after accusations that the MP showed disrespect by circulating alleged false rumors… pic.twitter.com/jC4X0sex6b
— EDHUB🌍ℹ (@eddie_wrt) February 10, 2025
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