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Traditional authorities of the Gonja state have placed a permanent ban on rosewood logging and commercial charcoal burning in the area in a bid to safeguard the environment.

Yagbonwura Tuntumba Bore Essa, Overlord of the Gonja Traditional Area, who announced this, said “the traditional authority of the Gonja jurisdiction is prepared to hand over any person found culpable in the logging and commercial charcoal burning business in any part of Gonja to the appropriate security agency for prosecution.”

This was contained in a speech read on the behalf of Yagbonwura by Kapori Abutu, Registrar of the Gonja Traditional Council (GTC), during an extraordinary meeting of members of GTC at Yapei in the Northern Region.

Yagbonwura Bore Essa said indiscriminate logging, commercial charcoal burning and hunting were a danger to the environment and biodiversity.

The indiscriminate logging and commercial charcoal burning in the Gonjaland has rendered bare, forests in the area, and many long trucks have invaded the area carting away logs of wood and sacks of charcoal.

Yagbonwura Bore Essa called on district assemblies, security agencies, and the Forestry Commission in the area to support the ban to end such activities.

“With respect to the indiscriminate hunting, the council will hold a stakeholder consultative meeting with appropriate agencies to stop this uncalled for activity, which has also contributed to the environmental degradation in the Gonja state,” he said.

Yagbonwura Bore Essa appealed to government to help solve the Damongo water crisis saying “Gonjas will greatly appreciate it if the protracted water challenge at Damongo becomes a thing of the past.”

Mr Salifu Saeed, Northern Regional Minister, expressed disappointment at the rising spate of chieftaincy disputes in the region and appealed to Yagbonwura and his subjects to follow laid-down procedures in choosing chiefs in the area to promote peace.

He said government was working to solve the Damongo water crisis saying “as I speak, the project fund has been sourced and the necessary processes are being worked on to ensure its implementation in the shortest possible time.”