The Anlo State Traditional area is expected to hold traditional funeral rites for the late former President Jerry John Rawlings even though it has lost its fight to have the body of the former president handed over to it.
Speaking to Citi News, the Secretary to the local funeral planning committee of Anlo Traditional area, Agbotadua Kumasah said, the absence of a body will not prevent them from honoring one of their own, who was also properly installed chief.
Mr. Rawlings was instead given a state funeral at the Black Star Square ahead of burial at the military cemetery.
“Until his burial today, we were expecting his body to be released to us so now that they are going to bury him in Accra, we as Anlos will organize our traditional burial for him,” Agbotadua Kumasah said.
He noted that in Anlos’ history, there had been precedent for such an occurrence necessitating a funeral without a body.
“We have had some chiefs who were captured in war. We have had chiefs who drowned and the bodies were not recovered. We had chiefs who were burned to ashes and chiefs who were lost who we didn’t know whether they were alive or not.”
“But there are procedures for burying those people so with or without the body, we have our way of organizing funerals for such people,” Agbotadua Kumasah said.
The Anlo traditional area has been opposed to the state’s handling of the funeral arrangements since Mr. Rawlings’ death on November 12, 2020.
The Council said the arrangements made at the time were not by the customs and traditions of the Anlo people.
The people of Anlo even petitioned Torgbui Agbesi Awusu II, the Awadada of Anlo to demand that the body of former President.
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