Bishops Oyedepo and Adjeman
It took a legal battle that spanned nearly 19 years for Nigeria’s Bishop David Oyedepo to reclaim the Winners Chapel International (WCI) building which served as the church’s headquarters in Ghana.
It was a journey through the lower court, appeal court and finally the Supreme Court for the flamboyant Oyedepo to re-possess his church building from his break-away spiritual son, Bishop George Adjeman, a Ghanaian who was consecrated in Nigeria as a Bishop in November 1999 by Bishop Oyedepo.
Church Gist reports that Bishop Adjeman later rebelled against Oyedepo and refused to vacate the premises of Winners Chapel that he has used for the past 19 years.
But the Ghana Supreme Court has ruled in favour of Oyedepo and ordered that Adjeman not only vacates the premises but also to pay outstanding rent for the 19 years that he occupied the premises.
The Court has also modified the requirement for Bishop Adjeman to provide an account of his stewardship to WCI from January 16, 2004, to the present and to pay any outstanding sums to the Church with interest at the prevailing commercial bank interest rate, reducing the rate to be paid, among other decisions.
The Supreme Court also overturned an order by the Court of Appeal that prohibited George Adjeman and others from using the name ‘Winners Chapel’ for their breakaway group.
The Supreme Court has upheld the following orders made by the Court of Appeal:
Firstly, Living Faith World Outreach Centre recovers possession of all the land located at Winners Chapel No. 16 Otublohum Road, Industrial Area.
Secondly, the court has upheld the grant of H/No. 5, located at Arko Adjei Street, adjacent to Miklin Hotel, East Legon, Accra, to the plaintiffs.
In addition, George Adjeman and his group are prohibited from disturbing the Plaintiffs’ peaceful enjoyment of their properties, places, and items of worship.
Finally, the order for the Registrar General to remove the names of all the defendants as directors and/or subscribers to the Regulations of 1 and 2 Plaintiffs.
On the other hand, the appeal against the Court of Appeal’s decision has been partially granted.
The court has overturned the order directing the Registrar General’s Department to remove the name ‘Winners Chapel’ from the Registrar of Companies.
Secondly, the order that George Adjeman and others should not use the name ‘Winners Chapel’ because it belongs exclusively to the Living Faith World Outreach Centre has been set aside. This means that although the name ‘Winners Chapel Ghana’ can operate within Ghana, it will be nearly impossible to use the exact same name in any country outside Ghana.
Bishop Adjeman reportedly broke away with 14 churches while the headquarters had 16,000 regular worshippers. However, today, the Adjeman group has dwindled to less than 1,000 at the headquarters, reports Church Gist.
