KROBOS MARK KLOYOSIKLEM FESTIVAL (PAGE 31)

A GRAND durbar of chiefs and people of Yilo Krobo to mark their annual Kloyosikplem Festival was held at a place near Somanya at the weekend.
The festival, which was in remembrance of the forceful eviction of the Krobos from the Krobo Mountain by the then British colonialists in 1892 and normally held at Somanya, the traditional capital, was this year organised beneath the mountains, about eight kilometres away from Somanya.
It was attended by a number of dignitaries such as Nene Sasraku, a divisional chief of Manya Krobo, the District Chief Executive for Yilo Krobo, Mr Joseph Adu Tawiah, the Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Kwadwo Afram Asiedu and the Minister of Chieftaincy and Culture, Mr Sampson Kwaku Boafo, who represented the President, Mr J.A. Kufuor.
In his message, which was delivered by Mr Boafo, President Kufuor said the government had, for the past eight years, provided a number of social amenities such as good roads, schools and poverty alleviation initiatives like the Capitation Grant, School Feeding Programme, the Health Insurance Scheme and microfinance credit facilities of which the people in the Yilo Krobo area had also benefited.
To further improve the lot of the people, President Kufuor said GH¢500,000 from the Millennium Challenge Authority Fund had been made available for a number of mango growers in the area, as well as another GH¢70,000 from the same fund to pepper cultivators, to boost production of the two crops.
This, the President said, would make it possible for the farmers to generate more income to improve their lives.
The President further said the government was looking for the possibility of returning the lands in and around the Krobo Mountain, which were taken over by the colonial administration, to the traditional authorities.
The President expressed his appreciation to the people of Yilo Krobo for preserving their culture and indicated that the government was also committed to helping communities preserve their cultures.
He thanked the people for their continued support to the government and called on them to turn out in their numbers to exercise their franchise on December 7.
The Konor of Yilo Krobo, Kpetekple Narh Dawutey Ologo VI, thanked the government for providing a number of social amenities and poverty alleviation initiatives in the area.
The Konor appealed to the government to expedite action on returning the lands in and around the Krobo Mountains to the traditional authority to be developed into a first class tourist facility.
Kpetekple Ologo also asked the government to help address other challenges in the area, which include the rehabilitation of the Somanya-Kpong road, upgrading of the town’s polytechnic to the status of a district hospital, improvement of the infrastructure of the Yilo Krobo Senior High School, as well as enhancing telecommunication facilities in the area.