The Paramount Chief of Abutia Traditional Area, Togbega Abutia Kodzo Gidi, has called on Christians to change their attitude towards culture and tradition, upon which society is built, and to stop regarding chiefs as evil and idol worshipers.
Togbega Gidi said it was unfortunate that some Christians did not appreciate the roles chiefs played, associating them with the devil. He noted that anytime a royal attends church and is about to be made chief, church members often opposed such a decision.
The Paramount Chief made the call at the outdooring ceremony of a new Mankrado for the Abutia Traditional area, TogbeKeh VIII, and his Queen Mother, Mama Kehbeah III, who are all from the Gbakoe Clan of Abutia-Teti in the Ho West District of the Volta Region.
The 36-year-old Mankrado works with the Ho West District Assembly as the District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP) Coordinator, while Mama Kehbeah, aged 23, a Biological Scientist, is a National Service Personnel at the 37th Military Hospital in Accra.
Togbega Gidi said it was important for Christians to appreciate the traditional and cultural values of the communities they lived in and described the chieftaincy institution as the lifeline of society centuries before Christianity came.
He stated that the role of chiefs includes promotion of peace, unity, development, and preservation of culture and tradition of the people, adding that the peace being enjoyed in the country paved the way for churches to propagate the gospel.
Togbega Gidi also noted: “I advise all Christians to respect our tradition and culture values, and should understand that our ancestors are there and there is also a supreme God that we recognised as well. Please change your attitude, chiefs are not evil men as you think, and we all recognise a higher God like you do.”
The Paramount Chief further urged the new chief and queen mother to work closely with the chiefs and queen mothers of the area to promote development, stressing the need to preserve and promote the tradition and cultural values of the people of Abutia for the benefit of present and future generations.
TogbeKeh VIII, in his address, thanked the kingmakers for the confidence reposed in him and the Queen Mother, Mama Kehbeah III, and called for collaboration and support to enable them to work effectively.
He said his vision was to work with the traditional rulers in the area to promote education, saying education was the engine of growth of every community. TogbeKeh VIII urged parents to ensure that their children of school-going age were in school.
The Queen Mother, Mama Kehbeah III, also assured that she would support the Abutia Traditional Council to bring development to the area.
BY SAMUEL AGBEWODE, ABUTIA-TETI
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