The Dormaahene, Osagyefo Oseadeeyo Agyeman Badu II, has sparked debate once again after challenging one of Ghana’s most revered spiritual narratives. Speaking during the inauguration of the Bonokyempem Council in the Bono Region on Thursday, August 14, 2025, the Paramount Chief of Dormaa and President of the Bono Regional House of Chiefs dismissed the widely held belief that supernatural forces can summon objects from the heavens into the physical world.
According to him, such claims are misleading and must not be entertained in modern Ghanaian society. He emphasized that ordinary people should not be deceived into believing that spiritual leaders or traditional priests possess powers to command objects from the skies.
To drive home his point, Agyeman Badu II referenced one of the most famous legends in Ghanaian history: the origin story of the Golden Stool of the Ashanti Kingdom. Historical accounts often narrate that Okomfo Anokye, the legendary fetish priest, called down the sacred stool from the skies during the reign of Osei Tutu I. The stool is said to have descended in a dramatic display of thunder and white mist, landing directly on the lap of the Asantehene at the time.
But the Dormaahene openly questioned this account. He suggested that the physical appearance of the stool, when it was publicly displayed in recent years, did not support the belief that it descended supernaturally. Instead, he pointed out that the revered artifact bore signs of craftsmanship, such as welding, which to him indicates it was manufactured by human hands rather than being summoned from the heavens.
This is not the first time Agyeman Badu II, who also serves as a High Court Judge under the name Justice Daniel Mensah, has courted controversy with his historical views. Over the years, he has been vocal about re-examining parts of Ghana’s past that he believes are either exaggerated or misrepresented. His consistent call has been for Ghanaians to separate myth from fact, especially in matters concerning tradition, culture, and spirituality.
The Dormaahene’s latest remarks are likely to reignite discussions among traditionalists, historians, and cultural custodians. While many Ghanaians continue to revere the Golden Stool as a sacred emblem of the Ashanti Kingdom’s unity and authority, others may now revisit the narrative with fresh questions in light of his critique.
The launch of the Bonokyempem Council, which was meant to highlight the unity and development agenda of chiefs within the Bono Region, thus became a platform where the Dormaahene once again demonstrated his willingness to confront long-held cultural beliefs head-on.
