Profile of Apostle Eric Kwabena Nyamekye, Chairman of the Church of Pentecost

Apostle Eric Kwabena Nyamekye, 53, has been elected the new Chairman of the Church of Pentecost.

He will succeed Apostle Prof. Opoku Onyinah, who officially retires in August this year.

Apostle Nyamekye, who was nominated by the outgoing Chairman, Apostle Prof. Onyinah, in consultation with the Executive Council of the church, was elected yesterday, May 3, 2018 at the ongoing 43rd General Council Meeting of the Church at the Pentecost Convention Centre (PCC) at Gomoa Feteh in the Central Region.

He will have a five year term, renewable by another five years. Apostle Prof  Onyinah had a 10 year tenure.

Election

In line with the constitution of the Church of Pentecost, a candidate has to be voted for by an electoral college, made up of members of the Executive Council, apostles, prophets, evangelists, all area heads in Ghana and national heads who are apostles, prophets or evangelists from across the world.

Upon endorsement by the electoral college, the candidate is presented to the General Council, which is made up of all members of the electoral college and ordained pastors of the church, area executive committee members, national deacons, national secretaries, trustees, chairmen of boards and committees, ministry directors, national executive committee members of ministries, area women’s ministry leaders in Ghana and retired ministers.

During the voting by the Electoral College, Apostle Nyamekye secured 147 votes, with four against, out of the 151 valid votes cast, representing 97.5 per cent.

Following the overwhelming endorsement of his candidature by the college, he was presented to the General Council to be voted for.

At the end of voting by the council, he polled 994 out of the 1,009 votes cast, representing 98.5 per cent. The against votes were 14, with one abstention.

The votes he garnered were more than the two-thirds majority votes prescribed by the Constitution of the church, which states: “The candidate so elected at the Electoral College shall be presented to the General Council for approval by two-thirds (2/3) majority votes of the members present and voting.”

 On behalf of the General Council, the outgoing Chairman, Apostle Prof. Onyinah, congratulated the newly elected Chairman, Apostle Nyamekye.

In his response, Apostle Nyamekye gave glory to God for granting him the opportunity to serve in the highest office of the church.

He also thanked the outgoing chairman, the immediate past chairman and the General Council for reposing the confidence in him to lead the church.

In his acceptance speech, Apostle Nyamekye said he knew he could not fit in the shoes of Apostle Onyinah but “the Lord will make my own path for me”

Profile

Apostle Nyamekye was born to the late Mr Stephen Antiedu Nyamekye and Agnes Owusu at Asokore-Ashanti on October 21, 1965.

He completed Tema Secondary School in 1983 and proceeded to the Nyankpala Agric College in the Northern Region, where he obtained a certificate in General Agriculture in 1986.

He holds a diploma in Human Resource Management from the Institute of Commercial Management, UK, a postgraduate diploma in Applied Theology from the University of Manchester, UK, and a master of Arts degree in Religious Studies from the University of Ghana, Legon.

He is currently a PhD student at the Stellenbosch University, South Africa.

Apostle Nyamekye worked with the Technology Consultancy Centre at the KNUST, Kumasi, for three years, before he was called into full-time ministry of the Church of Pentecost in 1991.

He was first posted as an overseer to the Daboase District in the Western Region between 1991 and 1995, before he was transferred to Agona Nsaba in the Central Region to serve until 1999.

While at Agona Nsaba, he was ordained a pastor in 1996.

Between 1999 and 2005, he was sent on missions to the Republic of South Africa.

In the later part of 2005, he was stationed at East Legon, where he served as a District Pastor until 2008.

He also became the Resident Minister of the Atomic Branch of the Pentecost International Worship Centre (PIWC) from 2008 to 2011.

He was later called into the Office of Apostle and transferred to Tamale as the Area Head from 2011 to 2015.

Until his election to the highest office of the church, Apostle Nyamekye was the Area Head in Koforidua, where he had been for the past three years.

He was elected into the Executive Council of the church in 2013 and has since been a member.

He has also served and continues to serve on several boards and committees of the church, including being the Chairman of the Media Ministry Committee since 2015 and the Patron of the Youth Ministry between 2011 and 2016.