Court injunction stops planned installation of Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena as Kristo Asafo leader

A major legal showdown has erupted within the Kristo Asafo Mission after the High Court in Accra intervened to halt plans by some elders of the church to install Israel Kwadwo Safo, popularly known as Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena, as successor to the late Apostle Emeritus Dr Ing. Kwadwo Safo.

The injunction follows a lawsuit filed by two senior members of the mission, Kweku Agyenim Boateng, a former Deputy General Secretary, and Seth Appiah Richard Brown, who are challenging the legality of the succession process.

The suit, which names the Kristo Asafo Mission of Ghana, Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena, Festus Owusu Badu, Dr Kwadwo Addo Oduro and Robert Ntiful as defendants, seeks to prevent any attempt to present or recognise the late founder’s son as the new head of the church until the matter is conclusively determined by the court.

According to the plaintiffs, although Apostle Kwadwo Safo had earlier identified his son as a possible successor, amendments made to the church’s constitution in 2024 altered the succession arrangements and effectively disqualified him from assuming the position.

They contend that the revised constitution embodied the final intentions of the late founder and therefore constitutes the supreme authority governing the leadership transition within the church.

Court documents indicate that despite these constitutional changes, efforts have allegedly been made to install and publicly present Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena as leader of the mission. The plaintiffs maintain that any such move would be unconstitutional, unlawful and without legal effect.

They are asking the High Court to affirm the supremacy of the 2017 Constitution of Kristo Asafo Mission together with its 2024 amendments and to declare that the process of selecting a new leader must strictly comply with those provisions.

The plaintiffs are also seeking an order restraining Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena from portraying himself as the leader of the church, as well as a perpetual injunction preventing the mission, its Council of Elders and other officials from appointing, installing, recognising or presenting him as leader until all constitutional requirements have been satisfied.

According to the suit, the unresolved succession issue has already created tension and uncertainty among members and threatens the cohesion and stability of the church.

Accompanying the action is a penal notice warning the defendants, members of the Council of Elders and all persons acting on their behalf against taking any steps toward the installation or recognition of a new leader while the matter remains before the court.