History of the Chief's Palace
In Ghana, there are no mayors to lead cities, but chiefs. A chief is more like a local king: he has the power of his area, and the system of succession is like a monarchy. The next chief always is a son, brother or cousin of the current one. But: because the chief has the absolute power of his area, the national government always has to ask him for permission if they want to build something like a road, a building or a military base. Obviously, it is easy for the government to have a chief who is government-minded, if they want to have anything to say in the regions. This was a reason of a big problem in Wa that ended in 2006 (for the moment). When the last chief died in 2003, his normal successor would have been one of his two cousins. But instead, the government appointed someone from outside the family. This way, they would have more influence in the region. It made an end to a line...
