Emotions are running high within the Methodist Church, Accra Diocese, over a proposal by the Presiding Bishop, Most Rev. Prof Emmanuel Asante and Archbishop Very Rev. Titus Awotwe Pratt, to split the Accra Wesley Cathedral into two Dioceses.

According to our deep throat sources within the church, the move which is being spearheaded by the two leaders but fiercely resisted by some executives, if allowed to be implemented, would deepen tribalism as it is allegedly intended to separate Akans from Ga’s.

“The Akans have their own Cathedral in the same Accra Diocese and the Ga’s in the church are seriously against the division because there is already a Wesley Cathedral, which is under the Presiding Bishop. There are 3 dioceses already in Accra, including Tema, and the division is being done on tribal lines. They want to create another Diocese at Calvary Methodist, behind the Tigo office, which is very bad. Currently, our entire population is about 2 million, and they only want to create this new diocese in order to milk the church and buy cars for their cronies. The bishop of Accra is in a way trying to take the leadership of the church when the current archbishop retires this year (sic),” an insider told this paper in an interview under condition of strict anonymity.

But when Rev Emmanuel Asante was contacted, he described the news as irrelevant and bogus without any basis.

According to him, the Methodist Church had decided to create more dioceses since 2002, and that it was nothing new to the church.

He said although it was normal that people would rise against decisions by executives in the church, it was not relevant to put the church into disrepute by “saying that we are creating dioceses on tribalism basis… We don’t have a Ga Methodist, and we don’t have an Akan Methodist, the only cathedral we have is the one, at Asafoaste.”

He noted further that Dioceses are created to ensure effective evangelism and church growth. “For the ease of church work, we create dioceses.