0
0 Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, The Asantehene, has instructed the Bantamahene, Baffour Asare Owusu Amankwatia VI, to within one week, recover and surrender the stolen Asare Bediako deity at Adanwomase, to the Asanteman Sumankwaahene.
The deity, one of the sacred shrines of the people of Adanwomase in the Kwabre East Municipality, is reported to have been stolen from its sacred place in the town by one of the rival factions vying for its possession and control.
When the issue was first brought before the court of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu charged the Bantamahen, to work with the affected chiefs and people in the area to look for the deity, retrieve it and hand it over to the Sumankwaahene.
However, at the Kumasi Traditional Council meeting at the Manhyia palace on March 13, 2025, the Bantamahene, who is believed to be a supporter of the faction, which recently had custody of the deity, disclosed that, efforts to reclaim the stolen deity had proven futile.
When asked by the Traditional Council about the whereabouts of the deity, Baffour Amankwatia said: “We conducted a thorough search throughout the community, but the deity was nowhere to be found.
“We even sought assistance from the authorities, but to no avail.”
This, however, did not go down well with the chiefs and the Asantehene, who later found out that the Bantamahene had neglected the task assigned to him and renege on his duties.
He was subsequently found in contempt and penalized to slaughter eight rams.
“Before he presents his report on Monday, he must retrieve Asare Bediako from its current location and hand it over to the Sumankwaahene,” Otumfuo Osei Tutu, decreed.
The Kumasi Traditional Council is reviewing a report of the committee set up to investigate on the competing claims of ownership of the Asare Bediako deity and the Adanwomase stool.
Three factions, represented by Madam Akua Kyem, Opanyin Kwadwo Yadieya, and Opanyin Yaw Gyamfi, respectively, have laid claim to the deity.
Madam Akua Kyem asserted that her ancestors, who belonged to the Aduana clan, migrated from Denkyira to Asante with the deity and dwelt with Bantama Gyaase (an Aduana clan) at Abuakwa Asonomaso.
During their stay there, the deity, through its mystical powers, rendered assistance to numerous individuals in need and those afflicted with ailments until one day, it mysteriously vanished.
Nevertheless, through spiritual consultations, they were informed of its whereabouts and cautioned against relocating it once found.
According to her testimony in the committee’s report, the deity was eventually discovered at Adanwomase, prompting her forebears to resettle in that vicinity.
She recounted how the deity cured the sick and provided breakthroughs to all who sought its intervention, including the forefathers of Opanyin Kwadwo Yadieya, who were afflicted with leprosy.
She further narrated that when the Adanwomase stool became vacant, the family of Opanyin Yadieya petitioned to assume control, a request that was granted.
Since then, they have laid claim to ownership, she added.
The committee’s findings established that the legitimate custodians of the deity and the community were the descendants of Madam Akua Kyem, based on her detailed recollection of historical events related to the deity.
Her compelling evidence was corroborated by Bantama Gyaasehene and the Wawase traditional priest.
“Although all three claimants purportedly visited Bantama Gyaase upon migrating to Asante from Denkyira, she was the only one to have Bantama Gyaasehene as a witness, and his testimony aligned with hers”, the report indicated
Conversely, the family lineage of the other claimants, as well as some of their narratives, were deemed dubious and conflicting.
Consequently, the committee’s verdict was unanimous in favor of Madam Akua Kyem.
All segments of the Council concurred with the inquiry’s outcome.
A prior committee had been established by the Asantehene to investigate this dispute, yielding a similar result.
While the Asantehene upheld the committee’s findings, the Bantamahene persisted in asserting that the deity rightfully belonged to Opanyin Kwadwo Yadieya’s family.
He contended that, he had summoned the deity from the heavens and bestowed it upon his supposed sister.
However, according to Asante tradition, Bantamahene had no sister.
Exhibiting great patience, the Asantehene commissioned a second committee to reassess the case.
