Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in an interview in Accra, Mr S.A. Abopam, Secretary to the Peace Mediation Committee, A 14-member delegation led by Mr Robert Ajane, Chairman of the Council of Elders, engaged the two families early this year and appealed to them to give peace a chance and allow the court processes to travel to a logical conclusion.

He named other members of the delegation as Dr Andrew Akulaa, the National President, Mr Isaac Aduko Adongo, Member of Parliament for the area and Very Rev. Fr. Samuel Atinga, Cathedral Administrator

Speaking to both families at separate meetings, he said the delegation appealed to the families to encourage their youth to desist from acts of violence as it cost lives and property and also patented the area with bad name.

He said the team emphasised that the essence of chieftaincy was to preserve tradition, culture and to facilitate development, adding that progress could not be achieved in an environment riddled with violence and uncertainty.

The families were entreated to be more responsible in ensuring that peace prevailed and sustained before, during and after the court processes, he added.

In response, the Secretary said both Naba Abeka Nongbuure Maltinga and Naba Awugya-Lebna Raymond Alafia Abilba IV, expressed their appreciation to BONABOTO for seeking peace and the general welfare of the area through their interventions, during the early days of the issue and still pursuing same.

According to him, members of the organisation believed BONABOTO was the best and most objective to proffer a non-judicial solution to the conflict.

Mr Abopam said the families assured the group they would do their best to restrain the youth, even in the face of provocation, and appealed for the security services, especially the police, to act more professionally.

BONABOTO assured the families of their preparedness to reactivate the intermediation process to resolve the issue.

And added the group accordingly constituted a three-member working contact group led by Mr Nyeya Yen with Mr James Awuni and Mr Stanley Abopam as members to ensure information flow and engagement with the two families.

It would be recalled that during 2015, BONABOTO engaged the two families in a bid to find an amicable solution to the issue prior to both chiefs being enskinned which subsequently led to legal battles.

Mr Abopam said, though, both families at the time agreed with the group on the need to clearly map an acceptable selection and succession framework and made proposals to that effect, their proposals for the king making caucus had some few discrepancies that BONABOTO needed to iron out.

These were yet being worked when the issue deescalated, he added and that the group upon the success of the latest round of mediation, communicated its intention to restart the process in the medium to longterm to secure permanent peace and incident-free succession