Bawku, September 1, 2025 – The Mamprugu Youth Association (MAYA), Bawku Chapter, has rejected what it describes as a “sustained campaign of falsehoods and provocations” by the Kusaaug Traditional Council against Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre, urging government and security agencies not to be swayed by what it calls “fabricated allegations.”
In a strongly worded statement issued on Monday, MAYA accused the Kusaaug Traditional Council of spreading “baseless propaganda” aimed at undermining the authority and integrity of Naa Sheriga. According to the group, recent demands by the Kusaaug Council — including calls for the arrest of Naa Sheriga, stoppage of security escorts, and suspension of the Damba Festival — are “outrageous” and risk inflaming tensions in the already volatile town of Bawku.
> “No enskinment whatsoever has taken place. Naa Sheriga has not enskinned any chief, nor is he planning to do so. The allegations are pure fabrications designed to create needless fear and tension,” the statement emphasized.
MAYA further accused Kusasi militants of attempting to destabilize peace through repeated armed attacks, citing past incidents along the Bolga–Bawku–Pulimakom road where lives were lost and property destroyed.
The group also defended Naa Seidu Abagre’s legitimacy, stressing that his ancestry in Bawku dates back to the early 18th century, long before the Kusasis’ arrival in 1885. It dismissed Kusasi objections to the celebration of the Damba Festival as “misplaced and untenable,” insisting the festival is a legitimate cultural heritage of the Mamprusi.
Raising questions about the mediation process, MAYA asked why similar violent acts allegedly committed by Kusasi militants — including attacks on police and military officers, burning of barracks, and killings of civilians — did not attract equal condemnation or calls for sanctions.
The group reaffirmed its support for Naa Sheriga’s commitment to peace and urged the government to remain impartial.
> “Any wrongful action against Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre or the Mamprusi people would derail the peace process and embolden those bent on perpetuating violence under the cloak of grievances,” the statement concluded.
Read the full statement below!
DATE: 1st September 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRESS STATEMENT BY THE MAMPRUGU YOUTH ASSOCIATION (MAYA), BAWKU CHAPTER
The Mamprugu Youth Association (MAYA), Bawku Chapter, has observed with grave concern the sustained campaign of falsehoods and provocations by a faceless body known as the “Kusaaug Traditional Council” against Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre. For years, Naa Sheriga has chosen the noble path of silence, not out of weakness, but as a conscious effort to de-escalate tensions and safeguard the fragile peace in Bawku. Unfortunately, while he has restrained himself, the so-called Kusaaug Traditional Council has repeatedly issued press releases and held press conferences filled with baseless accusations aimed at defaming and denigrating his person.
On 30th August 2025, the so-called Kusaaug Traditional Council issued yet another statement in which it sought to impugn the integrity of Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre through falsehood and vile propaganda. The threats contained in that statement expose the calculated intention of the Kusasi leaders to strangle the Bawku township and put thousands of livelihoods in danger. The demands by the so-called Kusaaug Traditional Council, namely the arrest and prosecution of Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre, the stoppage of security escorts for non-Kusasi trucks and the stoppage of the Annual Damba Festival, are not only outrageous, they also portray a self-conceited mindset that can further inflame the already volatile situation in Bawku.
We wish to state categorically and without ambiguity that:
1. No Enskinment Whatsoever Has Taken Place
Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre has not enskinned any chief, nor is he planning to enskin anyone as the Kusasis allege. The allegations contained in the statement by the so-called Kusaaug Traditional Council are pure fabrications designed to create needless fear and tension.
2. Calculated Attempts to Destabilize Peace
The so-called Kusaaug Traditional Council’s falsehoods, combined with their simultaneous demand for the withdrawal of escorts, expose their true intent: to unleash armed bandits on innocent citizens as they have done in the past four years. The security agencies, including the military, can testify to the banditry and unprovoked attacks carried out by Kusasi militants along the Bolga–Bawku–Pulimakom road, resulting in several deaths and the destruction of property.
3. Legitimacy of Naa Seidu Abagre’s Heritage
Naa Alhaji Seidu Abagre is a true son of Bawku. His genealogy can be traced back centuries to 1721, long before the claimed arrival of the Kusasis in the Bawku area in 1885. His ancestors lived, ruled, and were buried in Bawku. Any attempt by the Kusasis to question his legitimacy or demand his removal from his own home as a condition to laying down their arms is not only a provocation and untenable but also exposes their lack of interest in peace.
4. Celebration of Damba Festival
The Kusasis have no basis whatsoever to object to the celebration of the Damba Festival in Bawku. The celebration of the Damba Festival is a bona fide cultural right of Mamprusis and no state apparatus should be hoodwinked into denying Mamprusis the right to practice this tradition. Any attempt to deny the Mamprusis this inalienable right will amount to a travesty of justice and a breach of peace. Moreover, the Mamprusis have for centuries celebrated the Damba Festival peacefully. The Kusasis themselves have openly admitted that they do not celebrate Damba, as such their objection is misplaced and untenable.
We ask all well-meaning Ghanaians and the security agencies to reflect on these pertinent questions regarding the hypocrisy of the Kusasis vis-à-vis the mediation process:
Was there no mediation when Kusasi bandits attacked military escorts with so much impunity?
Was there no mediation when the Kusasi bandits shot and killed a military officer (WO1) at Avengo and killed two police officers at Binduri?
Was there no mediation when the Kusasis shot at a military escort at the Highways in Bawku and injured two (2) military officers?
Was there no mediation when Kusasis burnt the police barracks in Bawku, burnt a police car and destroyed property?
Was there no mediation only two weeks ago when Kusasis killed an innocent Bissa gentleman?
Is the mediation not currently going on as Kusasi bandits terrorize innocent market women and children?
None of these atrocities was provoked by any enskinment or action by Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre. These are undeniable facts that must not be overlooked.
The Mamprugu Youth Association (MAYA), Bawku Chapter, reaffirms its full support for Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre. We stand with him in his unwavering commitment to peace, justice, and a sustainable resolution to the Bawku chieftaincy conflict.
We strongly urge government and the security agencies not to allow themselves to be blackmailed or misled by the so-called Kusaaug Traditional Council into acting wrongfully against Naa Sheriga Alhaji Seidu Abagre or the Mamprusi people. Any such action would rather derail the peace process and embolden those whose true objective is to perpetuate banditry and violence under the cloak of grievances.
We therefore call on government to remain firm, impartial, and committed to truth and justice, within the framework of the ongoing mediation process, as only this will pave the way for a lasting peace in Bawku.
Signed:
MR. SEIDU AWUDU
President – MAYA Bawku Chapter
ABDUL MAJEED BAGURA
Secretary – MAYA Bawku Chapter
0245283946 / 0206177698
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