The President of Ghana, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has praised Apostle Dr. Michael Ntumy, the late former Chairman of The Church of Pentecost.
In a tribute to the revered man of God read on his behalf by the Vice President, H.E. Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, at a memorial service held in his honour at the forecourt of the State House today, the President expressed sadness at the passing of the man, many touted as “God’s Chosen General.”
“It is not often that it can be said of someone that he or she has finished his or her life’s work, and with distinction. But we can certainly say that about the man we are gathered here to celebrate,” he said.
He noted that Apostle Ntumy, who served as the fourth Chairman of The Church of Pentecost from 1998 to 2008, was widely known for his life of discipline, honesty, and integrity, saying: “He was an outstanding servant of the Church, the Ghanaian people, and the public interest. His objective was always the advancement of Ghana, and even in his days of ill-health, he continued to make crucial interventions in our nation’s discourse.”
According to him, Apostle Ntumy has left a big void not only in The Church of Pentecost but also in the wider Christian space, as he was a constant source of good, rich Christian counsel.
“He deserves the befitting farewell being accorded him today in recognition of his social and spiritual services to the growth of democratic Ghana. He will be sorely missed,” he said.
He also extended deepest condolences to his loyal companion and wife, Martha, his children, The Church of Pentecost, and all the people of Ghana who have suffered a great loss in the departure of their faithful servant. “May his soul rest and abide in the bosom of the Almighty until the last day of the Resurrection when we shall all meet again,” he said.
BRIEF PROFILE OF APOSTLE DR. MICHAEL K. NTUMY
The late Apostle Dr. Michael Kwabena Ntumy was born at Osramane-Dadease on September 22, 1958, to Opanin Kwaku Kumah and Obaapanin Adwoa Tiwaah from Osramane- Dadease, near Kete-Krachi. Both of his parents have gone to be with the Lord. He was the fifth of the ten children of his parents. His father, who was affectionately called Agya Aku, officially named him after his elder brother, Kwabena Ntumy.
In 1964, at the age of six, Ntumy began his education at the Osramane Local Authority Primary “B” School. When he was in class one, he transferred to Primary “A” School, where he joined his colleagues in class three instead of class two on the advice of his friend, Joseph Ntumy. In 1973, he completed the Middle School Leaving Certificate examination with distinction. Kwabena, as he was affectionately called within family circles, became the school prefect in his final year.
Although he passed the entrance examinations for both secondary school and Teachers’ Training College, he preferred the latter. He, therefore, enrolled at Atebubu Teachers’ Training College in 1973 at the age of 15 and passed out on July 7, 1977, with a Teachers’ Certificate “A” at the age of 19. He was among the seventh batch of students who graduated from the College that year.
On the higher level of the academic ladder, Michael Kwabena Ntumy won a scholarship in 1992, which allowed him to attend a monthlong intensive Advanced Christian Leadership Seminar in Singapore. He also studied at the Regents Theological College in Nantwich (affiliated with the University of Manchester, UK), and obtained a Master of Theology degree in 2000. His pursuit of knowledge motivated him to study for a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Theology and Organizational Governance from an affiliated college of the Southern Christian University in Florida, USA, where he graduated in 2008.
In 1984, at the age of 26, he was called into the full-time ministry of The Church of Pentecost. After ministerial training at the Pentecost Bible Training Centre at Madina, Accra, he was stationed at Tamale until 1985, when he was transferred to Krachi Nkwanta. In 1988, he was posted to Liberia as a missionary and was stationed in Buchanan City. During the Liberian civil war when Charles Taylor’s National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) rebels captured some of the resident citizens of the five West African nations, including Ghana, that supplied troops for the operations of ECOMOG, Apostle Dr. Michael Kwabena Ntumy, his wife, their four children and a niece were taken hostage and transported to a rebel camp known as Flamingo Camp, nicknamed “The Camp of No Return” where they spent 185 days.
Even though many of the hostages lost their lives, the Lord miraculously saved the lives of Apostle Ntumy and his household. They returned to Ghana in 1991. In that same year, he was called into the office of apostle and was posted to La Cὃte d’Ivoire as National Head. Whilst on a ministerial trek in La Cὃte d’Ivoire in July 1992, he and his wife were involved in a terrible motor accident. [His paralysis in later years of his life is traced back to this unfortunate event.]
In 1996, he was transferred from La Cὃte d’Ivoire to France as the church’s first Resident Missionary and National Head. While serving as a missionary in France in 1998, Apostle Ntumy was elected as the 4th Chairman of The Church of Pentecost at age 40. Under his ten-year leadership as Chairman, the Church experienced exponential numerical, spiritual, financial, and material growth, gaining global prominence. This caught the attention of the then President of the Republic, His Excellency President John Agyekum Kufuor, to confer on him the prestigious Order of the Volta, Companion national laurel.
The Ntumy Administration was greeted with supernatural happenings in all facets of the Church. In education, the Church’s then Bible College was upgraded to a university status and known as Pentecost University College, now Pentecost University; the two Pentecost senior high schools in Koforidua and Kumasi, and other educational facilities were established. During the same period, the Church’s health frontiers were expanded by establishing many health centres in various communities across Ghana, while the Pentecost Hospital in Madina received a significant facelift. The Church’s membership grew by over 100%, increasing from 803,229 to 1,699,412 at the end of his tenure. This led to the creation of many administrative Areas and Districts to ensure the effective management of the members and church resources.
Thus, at age 50 in 2008, Apostle Dr Ntumy ended his chairmanship and was transferred to Germany as national head. However, after a surgical operation on his cervical spine in France, he became paralysed in the lower parts of his body. Being a man of faith who was highly optimistic, he did not let his disability incapacitate him. From 2013, he served as the church’s Director of Literary Works until September 24, 2023, when he retired in Hamburg, Germany.
He returned to Ghana on December 18, 2023, to finally rest from his active duty as a minister. We thought we were going to enjoy his wisdom, counsel, and all the great things he was made up of.
On Wednesday, December 27, 2023, God retired him from earthly duties as well. The peaceful and glorious clarion call welcomed him to his eternal home, and he gladly answered. Though the void remaining is huge, he has left great testimonies and legacies of Christian service.
May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace!
PENTECOST NEWS.