Kwahu chiefs petition IGP to probe Abene Palace raid
A high-powered delegation, made up of wing and divisional chiefs from the Kwahu Traditional Area, has petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to conduct a thorough investigation into the dawn raid of the Abene Palace, which resulted in the arrest of the Kwahuhene, Daasebere Akuamoah Boateng III, and the Queenmother of Kwahu, Nana Adwoa Gyamfua III.
The delegation, numbering about 50, including Daasebere Boateng III and Nana Gyamfua III, wants immediate access to Daasebre Boateng III, the Kwahuhemaa, and palace staff to retrieve personal belongings and essential items from the palace.
The petition was presented to the leadership of the Police Administration, led by the IGP, at a closed-door meeting at the police headquarters last Wednesday.
Event
Giving the sequence of events in the petition, the chiefs said on October 19, 2024, the kingmakers destooled Eugene Asante Boadi, who reigned under the stool name Daasebre Akuamoah Agyapong II, and subsequently enstooled Baffour Akoto Osei on January 25, this year under the stool name Daasebre Akuamoah Boateng III, assigning him responsibility for the Abene Palace.
However, the petitioners said, on November 17, 2025, around 4 a.m., Daasebre Boateng III was informed of a police raid at the palace, involving gunfire and physical assault on palace staff and the queenmother.
The petitioners added that reports indicated that several palace staff and the Kwahuhemaa had been arrested.
The petition stated that by 7 a.m, Daasebre Boateng III arrived at the palace to find one staff member handcuffed and visibly injured, alongside numerous police officers and vehicles, on the premises.
Upon inquiring about the police presence, the petitioners said Daasebre Boateng III received no responses, adding that as the custodian of the palace, he insisted on answers and pressed the police for clarification.
Following this, the petitioners said Daasebre Boateng III requested to be arrested in solidarity with those detained and as a result, was subsequently taken to Accra with his driver and a palace staff member without being informed of the reasons for their arrest.
Joint operation
The petitioners said at a Joint Operation Centre in Accra, an officer claimed the raid was to enforce a court order, yet failed to produce a copy of the order or any documentary evidence.
The chiefs said Daasebre Boateng III and other detained individuals were released around noon with no charges filed against them.
The chiefs stated in their petition that Eugene Asante Boadi had filed a chieftaincy petition against the kingmakers, resulting in an interlocutory injunction restraining the new Omanhene from performing his duties.
They argued that the order was not enforceable until directed by the National House of Chiefs, yet the action of the police suggested otherwise.
Requests
They, therefore, requested the Police Administration to furnish them with a copy of the court order allegedly enforced during the police raid.
A proof of service indicating the order was presented to Daasebre Boateng III and the relevant parties.
They also sought a documentation of requests from the Judicial Service for police assistance in executing the order and an explanation detailing why over 20 armed personnel were required for this operation and why it occurred at 3 a.m.
They also want clarification on the use of force and the treatment of palace occupants during the raid.
The chiefs further pleaded for access to the premises by the palace gardener and chef to enable them to cater for the livestock and perishable items, as well as conduct a comprehensive inspection of the palace and document any damages incurred during the raid.
Background
The Kwahu kingmakers explained that Eugene Asante Boadi filed a chieftaincy petition with Suit No. JC/ERHC/P.4/2025, before the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs against the Kingmakers/Members of the Kwahu Traditional Council and Daasebre Akuamoah Boateng III (aka Baffour Akoto Osei).
By his petition, Mr Boadi sought a declaration that his destoolment was unlawful and so the necessary customary rites should be performed to reverse his destoolment.
In their defence, the Kingmakers/members of the Kwahu Traditional Council, and Daasebre Akuamoah Boateng III asserted that Mr Asante had been destooled according to Kwahu customs and traditions and Daasebre Akuamoah Boateng III had been properly enstooled by the kingmakers as Kwahumanhene.
The applicant subsequently sought and obtained an interlocutory injunction from the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs to restrain the respondents to his petition from holding out Daasebre Akuamoah Boateng III as the Kwahuhene and to also restrain Daasebre Akuamoah Boateng III from performing any function or activity at the Abene Palace.
The Respondents to Mr Boadi’s petition, the Kingmakers, and Daasebre Boateng III appealed against the order for Interlocutory Injunction to the National House of Chiefs.
“By the mandatory operation of law as specified in the Chieftaincy Act, the appeal against the injunction order obtained by Eugene Asante Boadi, operated to stay execution of the said order,” the chiefs recounted in their petition to the IGP.
“Thus, the order of injunction could not be enforced unless otherwise directed by the National House of Chiefs.
This is the explicit language of Section 34 (1) of the Chieftaincy Act, 2008 (Act 759),” it added.
The Kwahu Traditional Council said the substantive case before the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs was yet to be heard and determined, while the appeal against the injunction order was yet to be heard by the National House of Chiefs.
