THE leaders of Ghana’s Ashantis formally announced the death of their king on Friday, more than a week after the 79-year-old monarch died.Asantehene Otumfo Opoku Ware II will be buried on March 25, one month after his death. According to tradition, the funeral will be held in private around midnight.Otumfo Opoku Ware II ruled the Ashanti, one of the oldest remaining kingdoms in Africa, for 29 years.He will likely be succeeded by his nephew.On Tuesday, Ghana’s Journalists Association apologised to traditional leaders for pre-empting their council by announcing the monarch’s death.The ancient Ashanti kingdom, once the most powerful state in the region, once spread from what is now central Ghana to Cote d’Ivoire and as far as Togo.