Nahinso chief arrested again for another offence in the Ashanti Region

KoThe chief of Nahinso, Nana Addo Boaman, who was arrested yesterday for conducting unauthorised roadworks, has been arrested again for a different offence.

On Thursday, 18 July, a clash erupted between the embattled traditional leader and officials from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), who accused him of filling a local wetland.

The Ashanti Regional NADMO expressed serious concerns about the environmental impact and legal ramifications of the Chief’s actions. However, Chief Nana Addo Boaman defended his actions, asserting that his efforts to fill the area were aimed at preventing flooding. He argued that his work was essential to address long-standing issues with poor road conditions and water accumulation.

“I told them that this is a problem that I came to inherit; it is not something that was created by me. On the record, I came to meet all these buildings here and, upon the complaints that have been coming from them, I told them that I can’t sit down and the right place for me to go is to go to the assembly. I have been there not less than eight years. Initially, my plea was he should help me with an excavator to come and clear the waterway and he told me emphatically that I should go and see the assembly member. As of the time he was telling me this, somebody within the assembly told me that people had just been elected and had not been inaugurated yet,” he stated, as quoted by citinewsroom.com.

Nevertheless, Ashanti Regional Director of NADMO, Frank Duodu, ordered the Chief’s arrest, asserting that he had no authority to fill the wetland. Duodu highlighted the environmental consequences, pointing out that the area is a designated wetland and the Chief’s actions could cause significant ecological damage.

GRIDCo officials also voiced concerns about the risks posed to their pylons by the Chief’s use of laterite to fill the area. They claimed that the roadworks served as a cover for the illegal filling of the wetland.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has since posted warning signs to prevent further access to the area. Ashanti Regional Programmes Officer of the EPA, Daniel Kofi Teye, has called on the Asantehene to intervene and stop local Chiefs from developing wetlands in their regions.

The Chief was reportedly taken to the Asokwa Police Command to assist with investigations. According to Citinewsroom, this incident marks the second time the Chief has come into conflict with NADMO officials over his attempts to fill the land.