Kingmakers and elders of the Ngleshie Alata Traditional Area in James Town, Accra, have dismissed claims by Prince Asharku Bruce-Quaye that he has been installed as the Paramount Chief of Ngleshie Alata under the stool name Oblempong Wetse Kojo II.
In a strongly worded statement, the elders cautioned the public and institutions not to recognize Bruce-Quaye, describing him as a “self-styled chief” with no royal lineage to the paramount stool.
According to them, the paramountcy alternates between two ruling families—the Ajumako Dwurampong and Adanse gates—but Bruce-Quaye hails from the Anumansa (Kweikuma Tsoshie) family, which is not eligible. They added that his own family had previously destooled him as a sub-chief, making his claim to the paramount throne illegitimate.
The elders further pointed to a 2015 ruling by the Ngleshie Alata Judicial Committee that barred Bruce-Quaye from parading himself as chief of even a smaller division, stressing that his latest claim is both misleading and unlawful.
They also challenged his use of the stool name “Wetse Kojo II,” explaining that the title historically belonged to Henry George Vanderpuye, who was installed in 1939. Any new claimant, they argued, should rightly be referred to as Wetse Kojo III.
The elders criticised the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs for inducting Bruce-Quaye despite ongoing court cases and pending disputes before the Judicial Committees of both the Accra High Court and Dodowa. They alleged that his induction bypassed proper processes and amounted to “fraudulent gazetting.”
Beyond legal issues, the kingmakers accused Bruce-Quaye of surrounding himself with violent supporters and warned companies and individuals against engaging in transactions with him, especially regarding stool lands. They said any such dealings would be rendered null and void.
Calling for urgent state intervention, the elders appealed to President John Dramani Mahama, the Interior Ministry, the Inspector-General of Police, and national security agencies to investigate Bruce-Quaye’s background and ensure peace in the Ngleshie Alata Traditional Area.
“We will not allow anyone to impose an imposter on us as our chief,” the elders declared. “Customary rites must come before gazetting, not the other way around. Justice must be done and seen to be done.”
The chieftaincy dispute remains unresolved in court, leaving the leadership of Ngleshie Alata in uncertainty nearly eight years after the death of the last substantive Paramount Chief, Oblempong Nii Kojo Ababio V, who ruled for 39 years.
