Chieftaincy Conflicts in Northern Ghana: A Constellation of Actors and Politics

Chieftaincy conflicts in Ghana are often presented as disputes involving rival groups over succession to traditional political power. However, chieftaincy conflicts are complex and often shaped by constellation of different actors, national and local level politics and elite maneuvering. This paper argues that chieftaincy conflicts go beyond the structural interpretations of competition and contestation for traditional power, but rather processual, encompassing constellations of diverse actors, elite politics and manipulation. In Northern Ghana, the combination of structural and processual factors drive chieftaincy conflicts. Party politics in chieftaincy conflicts have rendered chieftaincy institutions, that are supposed to be apolitical in nature, political.