Let’s overcome poverty and indignities - Asantehene

"We must act now to redeem our country”, he said, telling the people to awaken their spirit of creativity and unleash a new spirit of enterprise to make things happen.
    
Addressing a grand durbar to climax the celebration of 15 years of his enthronement at the Baba Yara Stadium, he said even as they hold the government accountable to its election promises, they should not wait on it for everything.
    
Royalty, elegance and spectacular cultural display was the scene as thousands of people across Ghana and beyond including politicians, captains of industry, finance and traditional leaders thronged the place to share in the joy of the event.
  
President John Dramani Mahama and his predecessors, Jerry John Rawlings and John Agyekum Kufuor, and spouses were on hand to add to the significance of the day.
    
Also present was former Nigerian leader, President Olusegun Obasanjo and other foreign dignitaries.
    
The stadium erupted into a frenzy as the Asantehene, resplendent in richly designed traditional cloth, adorned in gold ornaments and carrying a shot gun rode in a palanquin and under big multi-coloured umbrellas to the durbar grounds.

He was accompanied by a large retinue of Paramount Chiefs, Queens and attendants, amid the throbbing of the “fontomfrom”, “kete” and “mpintin” drums.
    
“Kwadwomfuo”- praise-singers, sang and shouted appellations extolling the exploits of the King, punctured by intermittent clattering of the executioners’ sod.
    
He then sat in state in full regalia and received homage from the dignitaries.
    
The sacred Golden Stool (Sika-dwa Kofi), the driving force behind the unity of Asanteman, which is rarely seen, was put on public display.
    
Otumfuo Osei Tutu recounted how the Asante Kingdom had been built through battles and said the new war he was now leading Asanteman to wage was that of “brain power” to give a high quality life to all.
    
He said he has identified education as a potent tool for achieving this goal and that influenced the setting up of the Otumfuo Education Fund, which has so far benefitted over 9,000 students nationwide.
    
The Asantehene urged the banks to give support to the agricultural sector, the mainstay of Ghana’s economy.
    
He said he cries in his heart whenever he heard young and energetic people from Africa perishing in the atrocious seas in search of greener pastures, pointing out that this would have to end.
   
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II spoke of a number of international collaboration and investment he had engineered and said some of these were showing results, citing a new township built at Aprabon near Kumasi through partnership with Israel.
    
President Mahama gave the King high marks for his strong leadership and efforts at bringing progress to the people.
    
He said the government would continue to stand by him and partner him in the drive to rekindle creativity, innovation and enterprise in the people, not only in Asanteman but the entire country.
 
 
Credit: GNA