Chiefs Do Not Determine Their Successors- Asantehene

The King of the Asante Kingdom, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II has set the record straight with regard to the enstoolment of chiefs.

According to the King, traditional stools are not bona fide properties for which occupants can choose their successors.

This practice is “un-Asante”, Otumfuo affirmed during the Kumasi Traditional Council meeting on February 10, 2025.

The statement was in response to a case involving the Kwansatuo position- hunter- in which the deceased chief, Nana Kwaku Nsiah, had promised his nephew- Kofi Arhin- he would succeed him when he died, the Council was told.

The promise had encouraged Arhin to invest his resources in litigation over the stool, as well as other expenses, from the time the chief fell ill until his passing.

Following the death of the chief, processes to enstool a new chief have been set in motion. The Family Head, Opanin Amadu Issifu, through due process, consulted with the heads of the family gates.

At this point, his nephew beseeched him to give the stool to him, a demand he resisted, prompting Arhin to invoke the Great Oath against him twice to stall the process.

First, Arhin challenged the selection of a candidate, claiming there was litigation over the stool. He later invoked the Great Oath to challenge the legitimacy of the family head, arguing he was not related by blood.

The move impeded the processes and called for its resolution before the Asantehene.

After hearing both parties on Monday, Otumfuo from his personal investigations ruled that the family head was indeed a relative and then went on to inquire from the family gates whom they had selected to take the Kwansatuo position.

All three women named Akwasi Nkrumah as their choice.

Otumfuo then remarked, “Whatever Kwaku Nsiah told you was indoors and not traditional. The stool is not his property so he cannot designate someone to succeed him. Per the traditions of Asante, it is the obligation of the family gates to select a candidate and chiefs. I know you are disappointed but that is not traditional. The choice of the women stands.”

Meanwhile, His Majesty announced compensation for Arhin for the investments he had made.

“We will apportion a land to you to offset all the debts you have incurred,” he told him.

Source: opemsuo.com/Hajara Fuseini