The Sɔfoase Yɛfretete Royal Family of Wenchi in the Bono Region has rejected claims circulating on social media suggesting that the long-running Wenchi chieftaincy dispute has been resolved.
In a statement, the family described the reports as “false, misleading, and deliberately concocted,” insisting that they have neither abandoned their case nor accepted any outcome regarding the contested stool.
The family maintains that together with the Nkwaduano Yɛfretete Royal Family, both regarded as aboriginal royal lineages of Wenchi, they remain fully committed to challenging the legitimacy of Mr Kwaku Abrefa Damoah, whom they accuse of unlawfully holding himself out as Wenchimanhene.
According to the statement, the dispute dates back to 2019, when the Sɔfoase Yɛfretete Royal Family initiated legal action to contest what they describe as the improper enstoolment of Mr Damoah by the then Wenchi Queen Mother, Nana Atoaa Sramangyedua III. The family argues that the process violated established customs and lacked the necessary consultations.
They further revealed that the decision was opposed not only by the Sɔfoase and Nkwaduano Yɛfretete families but also by some members of the Ahenfie Yɛfre Royal Family, the lineage of the Queen Mother and Mr Damoah, who considered the nomination a breach of tradition.
The Bono Regional House of Chiefs initially granted an injunction restraining Mr. Damoah from presenting himself as Omanhene pending the final determination of the case. However, that injunction was overturned by the National House of Chiefs in 2021 after an appeal.
The National House, while lifting the injunction, stated it could not determine who the rightful Wenchihene is and urged the Regional House to expedite the substantive case. The family believes the decision may have been influenced by a 2022 policy discouraging prolonged injunctions on chiefs, as such delays can disrupt traditional rites.
The Sɔfoase Yɛfretete Royal Family subsequently sought relief at the Supreme Court to reinstate the injunction but clarified that the application, recently withdrawn, related only to that interlocutory matter and not the core case.
They emphasised that the substantive suit challenging Mr. Damoah’s legitimacy under the 1992 Constitution and the Chieftaincy Act, 2008 (Act 795), remains active before the Bono Regional House of Chiefs.
After nearly seven years without a constituted panel to hear the case, the family disclosed that the Sunyani High Court has now granted a mandamus compelling the President of the Bono Regional House of Chiefs to urgently empanel a judicial committee to proceed with the hearing.
The family insists that any suggestion the dispute has been settled is “mischievous, reckless, and intended to mislead the public,” reiterating their resolve to pursue the matter through all lawful channels until a final determination is made.
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