Akyem Ayirebi chief in court over alleged forged Statutory declaration for enstoolment

A disputed statutory declaration allegedly thumbprinted months after the supposed maker had died became the central issue before the Koforidua High Court 3 as Nana Asare Duodu Gyimah III, also known as Kwadwo Gyimah, appeared over alleged forged documents.

In court on Monday, June 1, 2026, the accused pleaded not guilty to two counts of possessing forged documents and uttering forged documents.

The court admitted him to bail in the sum of GH¢500,000 with two sureties. Each surety must possess a valid Ghana Card.

The case concerns attempts by Nana Gyimah to secure recognition and gazetting as chief of Akyem Ayirebi in the Eastern Region.

At the centre of the prosecution’s case is a statutory declaration dated November 3, 2023, said to have been made by Abusuapanin Kofi Kumi, the late Head of the Bretuo Royal Family.

The prosecution’s position is that the document could not have been genuine because Kofi Kumi died on July 13, 2023, several months before the alleged date of the declaration.

Prosecutors also allege that Nana Gyimah relied on the same document to support his enstoolment and gazetting process, although he allegedly knew it was false.

The complainant, Prof Nana Owusu-Frimpong, a native of Akyem Ayirebi and a principal member of the Bretuo Royal Family, told the court that the Ayirebi stool became vacant in 2017 after the death of Obrempong Gyapire Agyekum II.

From the facts presented in court, the Queen Mother of Ayirebi, Nana Adwoa Adomakoa II, nominated Kwadwo Asante for the stool on September 29, 2019.

The court also heard that after the necessary customary approvals, Kwadwo Asante was installed on May 5, 2021, and now bears the stool name Obrempong Gyapire Asante III.

He is said to be in possession of the black stool and other traditional assets of the town.

The prosecution, however, alleges that Nana Gyimah later held himself out as chief between March and May 2022 and was subsequently sworn in at Oda without going through the accepted customary process for selecting a chief in Ayirebi.

It was further alleged that while the chieftaincy dispute was still pending, documents were submitted through the traditional council to support Nana Gyimah’s application for gazetting.

Among them was the disputed statutory declaration.

The prosecution also claims the document falsely stated that the black stool was in Nana Gyimah’s possession, although it remains with Obrempong Gyapire Asante III.

The matter has been adjourned to June 15, 2026, for case management proceedings.