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The disgruntled and defeated Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah, who was sacked from the Musama Disco Christo Church as its leader has failed to respect a Supreme Court Judgment upholding the decision of the church over serious criminal offences of rape and defilement.

It has been alleged that, Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah continues to flex his muscles at the Supreme Court ruling because he has been enjoying massive and unflinching support from a Parliamentary Candidate of Gomoa, National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) Parliamentary Candidate for the Gomoa West Constituency, Sam Kwesi Fletcher.

Sam Kwesi Fletcher, according to sources is solidly behind the sacked leader of the Musama Disco Christo Church who has also established his own church with the name Mozanto International believing that supporting him will better his chances of winning the elections.

Court documents in the possession of this paper revealed that, the impasse within the Musama Disco Chrito Church which travelled for almost eleven years was finally settled at the Supreme Court in November 2015.

It all began when the Church represented by Rev. Jeresim Offa Jehu and Rev. James Kinakosa Addae (Plaintiffs/Respondents) discovered from a publication that Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah (Defemdant) had raped and defiled a JSS girl.

Felt scandalous by his actions, the executive council of the church brought a libel action against the publishers of the said article only to discovered later that the Defendant, Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah had indeed committed the crime including other sexual misconduct contrary to the Church’s constitution and the Bible.

Admitting to the crimes committed, Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah said he would do a 21-days fast with prayers for the forgiveness of sins and also compensate his sex victims.

Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah was suspended and later the General Assembly of the church reached a conclusion to remove him from office. The decision of the church angered Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah’s family members who invaded and disrupted a general assembly conference, challenging the removal claiming that the Akaboha or head holds the office for life and cannot be removed.

This resulted in a legal tussle at the High Court when the Church (Plaintiff) was seeking a declaration that Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah, the Akaboha III been lawfully removed from post, that the defendant has been ipso facto removed or deposed from all ancillary post or offices, religious or secular, affiliated to or associated to with the church.

“An order upon the defendant forthwith to vacate and quit his present official accommodation at Mozano, near Gomoa Eshiem, along with his wife, children and others……. and to deliver or hand over the said accommodation, the keys and all the official contents thereof to the Church.”

The Plaintiff also asked the court for a perpetual injunction restraining the defendant whether by himself, his servants, agents, privies whomsoever or otherwise howsoever, from holding out the defendant in any manner whatsoever as the Akaboha or Leader and General Head Prophet or as any Kind of office holder whatsoever of the Musama Disco Christo Church.

The High Court in its ruling gave judgment in favour of the Plaintiffs (Church).

The case was thus sent to the Appeals Court on Appeal by the Defendant who was dissatisfied with the decision of the High Court.

During Appeal, the Defendant claimed he was not given a fair hearing when the investigative committee set up on his conduct, but evidences provided in Court indicated that the investigating committee’s work was met with ‘spiritual defence’ by the defendant when he told them it was a spiritual attack and reserved his comments for prayers.

Meanwhile, after careful examination of the record, the Court of Appeal held that it was satisfied that the findings of the trial Court were clearly supported by the defence of the record with no serious blunder on the part of the trial judge.

Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah again took the case to the Supreme Court on some eight stated grounds including the point that, the judgment is against the weight of evidence, the Court of Appeal erred by delivering judgment in favour of the Plaintiff church without considering the defence put up by the defendant.

He also said the Court of Appeal erred by ignoring evidential rule relating to admission of fact when it tuned blind eye to the import of the evidence of DW 1- Nana Koomson.

And that the Court of Appeal erred when it confirmed the decision of the trial court that the defendant in his capacity as the Akaboha of the Plaintiff church can be removed from office.

Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah howver failed to make any headway at the Supreme Court too when Justices of the Supreme Court Justice A. A Benin, S.O. A Adinyira (Mrs), N. S. Gbadegbe, J. B. Akamba upheld that the jurisdiction of the arbitration panel which was constituted by the Church was ousted by the general law of the land “… in the sense that the issues involved were criminal offences of rape and defilement which only the State, represented by the Attorney General and the courts of the land could deal with. These Criminal offences could not be the subject of private arbitration.”

The Judges went further to state that, “There is no doubt that such serious criminal offences as rape and defilement are above the Church’s jurisdiction and that Arbitration in the circumstances of the said case was a non-starter and upheld that the action was thus properly by persons with the right capacity to act on behalf of the church.

Notwithstanding the decision of the Supreme Court in that matter, there seem to be attempts by Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah who has established his own churn on the property of the Musama Disco Christo Church.

The situation is generating tension in Gomoa Eshiem when people in the area are gearing up against Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah to pack his bag and baggage out of the property of the church.

Sam Kwesi Fletcher, who is a parliamentary candidate of the area is doing very little to solve the situation since he had already pitched camp at the new Mozanto International formed by the sacked Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah asking him not to leave the land.

Opinion leaders in the area say, Sam Fletcer is only pursuing his political ambition with the issue since he fears he would lose votes from the newly formed Mozanto International members hence his decision to support Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah to stay and continue to spark tension in the area.

Signals received from the community is that roads have been blocked as result of the failure of Prophet Miritaiah Jehu-Appiah to relocate his church.

 Meanwhile, all effort to get Mr. Sam Kwesi Fletcher to comment on the issue proved futile as at press time.