New Juaben elders remove ‘offensive’ Oheneba Yao Boateng statue
1. The statue was erected without the authority of the Omanhene and the Traditional Council. This is considered as gross disrespect to the Omanhene, the occupant of the Yiadom-Hwedie Stool and Overlord of the New Juaben Traditional Area as well as the Traditional Council.
2. Oheneba Yao Boateng, who is not a royal from the Yiadom-Hwedie Royal Stool derives his status as Oheneba from his father, Nana Kwaku Boateng I, who reigned as Omanhene of New Juaben from 1913 to 1930.
3. One would have expected the children of Oheneba Yao Boateng, who erected the statue, to exercise due diligence and circumspection by first considering their grandfather, Nana Kwaku Boateng I, for the honour rather than his son and their father.
4. The inscription of “Prince Yao Boateng” instead of “ Oheneba Yao Boateng” displayed boldly on the said statue is also considered very offensive to the Akan customary practice and usage. From the matrifocal analysis of the Akan kinship structure, Oheneba Yao Boateng, whose mother is not an Akan, is also not an Akan. The said inscription is therefore a dirty trick that Oheneba Yao Boateng belongs to the Yiadom-Hwedie royal lineage without the pertinent blood of consanguinity.
5. On page 5 of the commemorative brochure on the late son of Oheneba Yao Boateng, Nana Yao Boateng Junior, dated 30th January 2021, which coincided with the timing of the erection of the statue is written the following: “Being a royal from both the paternal and maternal sides of the divide, Nana Yao was passionate about his heritage”. This claim to the New Juaben royal lineage is completely false since, in the Akan kinship structure, the son of an Omanhene is not a royal. Lineage in the Akan kinship system is always traced from the mother side and never from the father side as the children of Oheneba Yao Boateng are purporting to do.
6. The New Juaben Traditional Council has already earmarked the very spot for erecting the statue of Nana Kwaku Boateng I to commemorate his unique contribution as the Omanhene who built the New Juaben Palace. This decision is non-negotiable and cannot be varied in any way.
7. Oheneba Yao Boateng has not done anything tangible for the New Juaben State to merit the erection of