The chiefs and people of Dzodze Traditional Area in the Ketu North District in the Volta Region have celebrated their 12 "Deza" Festival.

It was on the theme: “Dzodze Deza, an instrument for unity and peace, sustenance for democratic governance for national development; a concern for Dzodze Traditional Area,”.  As such the people were called upon to work in the spirit of unity with a common goal to accelerate development in the area.

Oil palm was once the cash cow of the economy of Dzodze around which every activity revolved. There was no passage to any corner in the communities without being greeted with oil palm and was also very significant in the protection of the vegetative cover of the area.

However, for some reasons the people lost everything. To revamp the economy of the area, the chiefs and elders of Dzodze decided to go back to what once fed them by establishing a plantation and plant for processing palm fruits into oil and other products. This led to the reintroduction of the "Deza Festival".
 
Meanwhile, former President Rawlings called for the cultivation of a culture of mutual respect for each other and adherence to high moral standards right from the home. "Our traditional values have been relegated to the background because of our flirtation with Western culture but for our kind of democracy to be successful and sustainable we have to re-embrace our cultural values and take full advantage of the judicial values inherent, which are always protective of the values of probity, accountability, freedom and justice", he stated.

He also commended the people of Dzodze for the sense of unity and the prevailing peace, as well as the steady progress they are making as a young district under very challenging circumstances.
 
"I urge you to religiously guard the peace we are enjoying and create the enabling environment for active participation of all and sundry in the socio-economic development of your district", he added.

Ghanadistricts.com