Armed personnel from the Ghana Police Service have shut down the Assemblies of God Church at Bohyen Adumanu in the Bantama Constituency of the Ashanti Region over leadership succession.

On Friday, April 24, 2026, officers from the Kumasi Central Police Command locked all entrances to the church and posted a notice on the premises.

The notice read: “The church is temporarily closed down until further notice.”

The closure is reportedly linked to an internal leadership dispute following the retirement of the church’s head pastor, Rev. Yaw Manu.

In an interview with Adom News, Michael Gyasi, the church’s Youth Organiser and Mission Director, said congregants had endorsed Rev. Bismarck Opoku to succeed Rev. Manu. However, the decision was rejected by the church’s national leadership, which intends to appoint a different pastor.

"Last week, officials from the Assemblies of God headquarters informed the congregation that a new lead pastor would be appointed in two weeks and announced the dissolution of the local board. The members were told that refusal to accept the new lead pastor would result in the church’s closure," Gyasi said.

"The new pastor hasn’t even arrived yet, but we woke up this morning to find the church compound surrounded by armed police. They had locked all the doors and said they were acting on orders from our church leadership,” he added.

He said the congregation has tried to reach out to their leadership to verify the security personnel’s claims but has not received any response.

Despite the police action, aggrieved members insist they will hold their regular Sunday service.

“We are fully prepared to have our church service this Sunday, no matter the situation,” Gyasi said.

The Ghana Police Service has not yet issued an official statement explaining the reason for the closure.

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Police with guns shut down Assemblies of God Church over leadership dispute

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