'The will does not appoint Akofena as leader of the church'- Kantanka lawyer

Lawyer for the Kristo Asafo Mission, Nana Kofi Safo Kantanka, has clarified that the late Kwadwo Safo's will does not specifically name Kwadwo Safo Akofena as the next leader of the church.

Speaking in an interview on UTV on July 7, 2026, Nana Kofi Safo Kantanka explained that while the will appoints Akofena as the head of the Kantanka family, it does not confer on him the leadership of the church.

“The will doesn’t appoint him specifically as the leader of the church. The will states that Akofena is the head of the Kantanka family. The father chose him as the head so that his siblings would see him as the father and give him the maximum respect. Specifically, their father didn’t mention his name as the next leader of the church,” he explained.

Reacting to comments made by Osebo the Zaraman, the lawyer declined to engage directly with his interpretation of the will, arguing that interpreting such legal documents is the responsibility of trained lawyers.

“I don’t want to make any comment on what Osebo said about the will. I would have responded if a lawyer’s interpretation were different from mine. If the interpretation of the will were simple, we wouldn’t have pursued it as a course in law school. It’s only lawyers who can interpret a will. Someone like Osebo can never interpret a will, and this particular will is technical,” he said.

According to him, the late founder deliberately distinguished between his family affairs and the leadership of the church.

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He explained that had Kwadwo Safo intended to appoint Akofena as church leader, he would have stated it explicitly in the will.

“In the father’s own wisdom, he knows he has a family and a church. If he wanted to appoint Akofena as the next leader of the church, he would have specifically mentioned his name,” he stated.

Nana Kofi Safo Kantanka noted that the late founder entrusted the responsibility of selecting the church's next leader to the Council of Elders, who were tasked with choosing from among his three children.

“He has left that responsibility for the Council of Elders to perform the role of appointing the leader. The Council of Elders also went through the necessary process to choose one of its members. Akofena is one of the three children that can be chosen,” he shared.

He further stated that throughout the will, the late founder referred to Akofena as "my son, Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena," indicating that he was one of the eligible children considered for the church's leadership, rather than the automatic successor.

“Whenever the father was stating him as part of the three children in the will, he says, ' My son, Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena,' so meaning he is part of the three sons that can be chosen,” he added.

Kwadwo Safo Kantanka's will named Nana Kwadwo Safo Akofena as head of the Kantanka family, not the next Kristo Asafo Mission leader. - Nana Kofi Safo Kantanka, Lawyer for the Kristo Asafo Mission#UTVGhana pic.twitter.com/VWDAtGkM3L

— UTV Ghana (@utvghana) July 7, 2026