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Naa Fuseini Seidu Pelpuo the Fourth, Paramount Chief of the Waala Traditional Area, has congratulated President John Dramani Mahama�s government, for its efforts in maintaining a good democratic system that is yielding positive developmental results. �Your policies and developmental programmes are very positive and laudable in the region, and the Wa Municipality in particular�, he noted. Naa Pelpuo who was speaking during the celebration of the Damba Festival of the Chiefs and people of the Waala Traditional Area in Wa on Monday, thanked government for giving the region its fair share of the national cake in areas such as Water and Sanitation, Education, Health and Agriculture. The celebration was under the theme: �Peace as an Essential Tool for Development�. Naa Pelpuo said during the celebration of the festival last year, he made a request to the President to tar some roads in the region, adding that he had started seeing signs, especially on the Wa-Tumu-Navrongo road, and the Nadowli-Lawra-Nandom road, among others. This time, the Paramount Chief appealed to government to construct small irrigation dams to promote dry season farming, to help reduce poverty among the people. Naa Pelpuo said the Waala Traditional Council believes that traditional rulers contribute much in grass root administration in the country, hence, its proposal for the elevation of some of the chiefs to the status of Paramount Chiefs. He, therefore, pleaded with the Minister for Chieftaincy and Culture, to put it high on his agenda. Mr. Abu Kabiebata Kansangbata, Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, commended the chiefs for the peaceful celebration of the festival, adding that government was committed to preserving the chieftaincy institution to help promote peace and development across the country. He said the region was peaceful, despite pockets of Chieftaincy disputes, and appealed to the President of the Waala Traditional Council to use his good offices to resolve them amicably to promote peace and development in the region. Alhaji Abdul-Rashid Pelpuo, Member of Parliament (MP) for Wa Central and Minister of State in charge of the Private Sector, thanked the people on behalf of the President, for their peaceful nature which according to him was necessary for development. He mentioned the expansion of potable water in the Municipality, construction of the Regional Hospital, and the expansion of educational infrastructure, as some interventions of government. The Damba Festival is an annual event which affords the people the opportunity to take stock of their successes and lapses for the past year in order to chart the way forward for the ensuing year. The four royal gates or clans in Wa namely; Yejiisi, Naakpaha, Jonyuosi and Naajeri, trace their ancestry to Nalerigu or Yendi in the Northern Region of Ghana. During the seven-day period of Damba, all subjects of the four royal gates of Wa congregate at the forecourt of the Wa Naa�s palace amidst drumming and dancing, to show appreciation to God for taking them through the year, while asking God to grant them another successful year. The festival is climaxed with a ritual of the Wa Naa stepping over a live cow on the sixth day of the celebration, and his success in that endeavour signifies the renewal of his mandate for another year.