The Akyem Abuakwa Standing Committee has stripped the Etweresohene, Daasebre Ofosu Kwabi Ayebiahwe, of his traditional title “Daasebre.”
He is henceforth to be known and addressed simply as Ofosu Kwabi Ayebiahwe, following what the committee describes as acts of rebellion against Okyeman and the disclosure of proceedings from a meeting held at the Ofori Panin Fie in Kyebi.
Senior Counsel for Okyeman and a member of the Standing Committee, Mr Kwame Boateng, announced that the committee had withdrawn all traditional courtesies accorded to the Etweresohene due to what he termed rebellious and treasonable conduct against Okyeman.
“As the chief of Etwereso has himself declared that he will never step foot in Kyebi again, the Council has today granted his wish in full measure. He is hereby denied any and all audience at the Ofori Panin Fie, except to answer before any statutory body. No gate shall open to him. No stool shall be set for him. He has chosen the path of exile, and we shall not call him back,” he said.
Mr Boateng noted that the Etweresohene had, on two occasions, declined the Committee’s invitation to respond to a viral video and other publications in which he allegedly made rebellious statements against the Okyenhene.
“Whereas the Standing Committee, in accordance with our time-honoured customs, formally invited the chief of Etwereso to appear before us on a date he himself proposed, he uncustomarily and disrespectfully sent an excuse through the State Secretary, refusing to face the Okyenhene and the elders,” he stated.
“Having heard the silence where his voice should have been, and having weighed his words and deeds against the oaths he swore upon the Ofori Stool, the Standing Committee of Okyeman hereby strips him of his courtesies,” Mr Boateng added.
The Committee further announced the withdrawal of his reporting rights.
“He can no longer report on matters of Etwereso to the Oman. No communication from him shall be received by the Okyenhene, the State Secretary, or any recognised traditional authority of Okyeman,” the statement said.
The Standing Committee has also directed all towns, villages, and settlements previously under the Etwereso division to, with immediate effect, cease recognising his authority. They are to report directly to the Benkum Division at Begoro.
Additionally, the Etweresohene has been removed from the Standing Committee. His seat has been declared vacant, and he will no longer participate in the affairs of the Akyem Abuakwa State.
To seal the decision traditionally, Akyeame and Nananom poured libation and sacrificed a sheep.
“Let it be known throughout Okyeman, from Kyebi to the furthest farmstead, that rebellion shall find no shelter under our sacred umbrella. The Okyenhene does not break his own house; but when a man raises his hand against the house, the house will close its doors against him.
We do not rejoice in this declaration. We mourn the fracture of kinship. But the custom is clear: he who denies the stool loses the stool. He who rejects the state is rejected by the state,” Mr Boateng said.
“Let the drums speak the truth. Let the blood of the sacrifice bear witness to our unbroken customs, and let the ancestors stand as witnesses,” he concluded.
The Etweresohene has been in the news in recent days following a dispute with the Okyenhene over who has the authority to install a chief for Osenase. He challenged the Okyenhene’s authority and threatened to break away from Akyem Abuakwa, insisting that he alone determines who becomes the chief of Osenase.
BY TIMES REPORTER
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