The chiefs, elders and people of Korleman in the Ga West Municipality of the Greater Accra Region have issued a firm public rebuttal of rival claims over the ownership and administration of Korleman lands, while emphatically reaffirming the legitimacy of their recognised chief, Nii Martei Korley III.
Addressing a press conference last Wednesday, the leadership of the Nii Korle Family stated that Israel John Clottey was stripped of his position as head of the Nii Korle Family by a High Court ruling delivered on October 28, 2025, following his own declaration that he was no longer interested in working with the family.
The family clarified that Mr Clottey was installed only as Head of the Nii Korle Family in 2014 — and not as chief of Korleman — stressing that Korleman land remains exclusive family property. They alleged that from 2015, Mr Clottey began parading himself as chief of Korleman after joining an association of chiefs and queen mothers in Ga West, a claim the family described as entirely without basis.
The elders and kingmakers further alleged that land documents signed by Mr Clottey bore the inscription “Nii Korle VII Chief and lawful representative,” a title they categorically rejected, insisting that no chief bearing that stool title has ever been installed in Korleman.
Suspicions about Mr Clottey’s status, the family disclosed, first surfaced in 2020 when he contested the presidency of the Ga West Chiefs and Queen Mothers Association, and background checks confirmed he held no chiefly title.
In 2022, all five heads of families constituting the Nii Korle Family reached a consensus that all future land documents must be endorsed principally by Nii Martei Korley III, with representatives of the five families — including Mr Clottey at the time — signing only as witnesses.
At the press conference, bulky site plans covering parcels of land allegedly sold without the knowledge of the wider family were displayed, with the leadership criticising certain chiefs for endorsing land transactions without conducting proper background checks, thereby facilitating indiscriminate land sales.
Addressing allegations of landguard activities, Nii Martei Korley III denied deploying landguards, insisting that individuals seen on the land were youth of Korleman legitimately protecting family property. He cautioned that persons or organisations without authentic land documentation would not be permitted to undertake any development on disputed lands.
The chief urged all persons who acquired land from Mr Clottey under documents bearing the name “Nii Korle VII” to submit those documents to the Korleman Land Secretariat for verification and authentication.
Responding to a viral social media video in which a woman identified as Yaa Asantewaa claimed that Nii Martei Korley III had been destooled, the Queen Mother of Korleman, Naa Mokor Akyere I, dismissed the claims with contempt.
She stated that neither the woman nor her family lineage was known to any of the five families of the Nii Korle Family, declaring emphatically: “I am the Queen Mother of Korleman and I state emphatically that I do not know any family member by the name Yaa Asantewaa.”
Naa Mokor Akyere I urged the public to disregard the video entirely, reaffirming that Nii Martei Korley III remains the legitimate, recognised and gazetted chief of Korleman.
