Custom was the First Law, and Culture was the First Constitution- Asantehene
In a walk down history, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, defended age-old customs and culture as one of the most effective means of maintaining law and order within the Ghanaian society.
According to the King, custom was the first law that was enacted, while culture was the constitution of the day.
These, His Majesty indicated, regulated the behaviours of people at the time.
“Long before the first police uniform was sewn, communities had learned how to live together. Before courts were built, disputes were settled, before statutes were written, wrong was already understood. Custom was the first law. Culture was the first Constitution.
“It taught restraint before punishment, responsibility before rights and harmony before victory. It reminded people that their actions didn’t end with themselves, that every deed echoed through family lineage and memory. In those days, the child feared disappointing an elder more than facing authority,” Otumfuo said while delivering an address at the National Police Headquarters on January 6, 2026.
With these two in place, Otumfuo recounted how a man thought twice before wrongdoing, adding that it was not because of arrest but because the shame would outlive him.
As such, the Asantehene noted that conduct was shaped long before crime could take place.
“That is the quiet power of culture. When culture is strong, crime struggles to breathe; when culture collapses, law enforcement is forced to compensate.”
In further remarks, Otumfuo affirmed that the police, as the protectors of law, must collaborate with traditional authorities who are guardians of culture to safeguard the future.
“Culture cannot do without the police and the police cannot succeed without culture…The Tradition and modern law enforcement are not rivals struggling for relevance. They are collaborators safeguarding the same future.”
“When traditional authorities respect legal authorities, communities stabilise. When police respect local customs, cooperation deepens. When both communicate openly, crime loses its hiding place. If law alone can save society, then countries with the thickest laws would have no prisons at all, yet even prisons have rules and require values.”
Emphasising the need for partnership with chiefs in community policing, His Majesty noted that no society can outsource morality entirely to the state and expect peace.
“Let chiefs serve as allies in community policing. Let officers be trained to understand the customs of the people they protect. Let dialogue precede deployment and mediation precede confrontation. This is not softness; it is intelligence. The nature of public order lies not in louder sirens but in stronger values supported by competent, disciplined law enforcement.”
Story by Hajara Fuseini
Click to read more: https://opemsuo.com/author/hajara-fuseini/
