Word Miracle church owns Avenor land …But Ahmadiyya Mission still lays claim to it

Details have started emerging about the true owners of the disputed land at Avenor, in Accra, which has been a subject of controversy between the Bishop Charles Agyin Asare-led Word Miracle Church International (WMCI) and Maulvi Wahab Adam-led Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission over the last couple of days.

Chronicle investigations have revealed the identity of the original owner of the land, as one Kofi Appiah. Mr. Appiah became the owner of the land on May 24 1977, by virtue of the fact that he was given the deed of entitlement of the land by its previous owner, one Nii Ayitey Cobblah after transferring ownership into his name.

This came to light after the paper put in an official search request at the Lands Commission in Accra to ascertain the veracity of the claims and counter claims of the ownership.

The findings that came out after the search indicated that before the Word Miracle Church, the land had been owned by four different people in the persons of Joseph O.A Lamptey and Richard T. Nettey, who signed a declaration in November 23 1976, and then transferred the title deeds into the name of another Numo Ayittey Cobblah, whose name has been cited in documents in both claimants of the land.

The findings further indicated that Numo Ayittey Cobblah in turn transferred and signed a conveyance in May 24 1977, giving the title of the land to one John Kofi Appiah.

But when Mr. Appiah passed on in April 18 2003, the ownership of the land automatically went to his son and estate, one Kofi Afriyie, who won a legal action instituted by his late father at an Accra High Court, presided over by his Lordship Justice G.A Aryeetey, against the then Ghana Water Engineering company limited over the same parcel of land.

It was after winning this legal battle that Mr. Afriyie sold the land to the Word Miracle Church International in the year 2004, and assisted them in registering it in their name. It was based on this route of title and ownership that the Chief Registrar of Lands at the Land Title Registry decided to register the land in the name of the church and subsequently issued them with a Land Certificate, dated September 14 2009.

However, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission still make a claim to the land, since according to them they got it through an Indenture executed on or about December 11 1985, between the Mission as the lessee and the same Numo Ayittey Cobblah (Korle priest) who conveyed the land to Kofi Appiah in 1977 and Nii Ayittey Agbofu II (Gbese Mantse) and Nii Amugi II (Ga Mantse) as lessors.

In a letter copied to the Presiding Bishop of the WMCI, Bishop Charles Agyin Asare, the General Secretary of the Mission, Ahmad S. Anderson expressed his utter shock and dismay at the church's claim to own the land.

Whilst they take steps to protect and defend the integrity of the said land, he noted,'we deem it necessary in the spirit of peace and brotherhood that guide the activities of all religious organizations like ours, to claim ownership of the land.'

The only document that the Mission appear to be banking its hopes on, in their bid to claim ownership of the land is an Indenture which in itself does not constitute a deed or title to a land.

That notwithstanding, it has indicated its preparedness to explore avenues with the WMCI in resolving the controversy, devoid of tension, acrimony, rancour and bad press that recent events relating to the land have engendered. They thus prayed for an amicable resolution of the stand off, since according to them, 'endless litigation would not serve the best interest of any of us.'

Meanwhile, an Accra High Court on Wednesday granted bail to the General Secretary of the WMCI, Bishop Frimpong. He was arrested and kept overnight by the police, alongside twenty-four others on the day of the shooting incident, which claimed 2 lives on the disputed land. The rest have been remanded into prison custody till the next hearing.