In the ongoing Defamation suit filed by Lighthouse Chapel International ( LCI ) against Manasseh Azure and 3 others, Edward Laryea a former LCI pastor testifying as witness for he defendants has admitted under rigorous cross-examination that he did not build the Kade Lighthouse church building with his personal funds.
LCI sued Manasseh Azure, Edwin Appiah, Sulemana Braiamah and Media Foundation for West Africa for defamation for the publication of the series of articles tilted “Darkness In A Lighthouse”. Ps. Edward Laryea a witness for the defendants took to the box to be cross-examined by Mr. Kweku Paintsil, counsel for LCI on 6th July 2026.
Ps Edward Laryea along side with 5 other former LCI pastors namely Larry Odonkor, Oko Mensah, Seth Duncan, Edem Amankwah and Faith Makafui Fiakojo granted interviews to the defendants for the publication of the articles.
The articles published that Lighthouse Chapel had exploited the former pastors and lured them under a new policy named “Become Who You Can Become” to use their personal funds to fully finance church building projects and schools with their personal funds with the promise that they will not be transferred and that they would own the churches after they built them.
According to the articles after these pastors had blindly trusted the leadership of the church and used their personal funds to fully finance the construction of these church and school buildings “without support from the mother church”, LCI transferred the pastors and exploited them took over the buildings. The article further published that “Build and Own” turned into “Build and Leave” and that this exploitation and abuse by the church “was a strategy to weaken and keep the pastors subservient to the dictates of the mother church”.
The suit further complained that the article published concerning the LCI headquarters that “The Qodesh, the headquarters of the church, which is painted black and white, starkly contrasting colours like a depiction of right and wrong”.
In the case of Edward Laryea, the Manasseh Azure published a picture of the Kade Lighthouse Church building and added the following caption: “The Church in Kade, Rev. Edward Laryea says he built by the grace of God from ground zero”. It added that Rev. Laryea and his wife had to use their salaries to buy building materials from Kantamanto and “generate their own money to build the church”.
“No one man can build a church with his money”
During cross-examination counsel for LCI referred him to the “ground zero” caption under the picture of the church building and asked “Is it true that you built the church with your personal funds?”
Rev. Laryea answered “It is yes but not absolutely because no one man can build a church with his money. Because the mother church helped to send me to the mission as a missionary which is all part of the cost of the building of the Church of Christ “. He added that he started the church. The church had no members.
Counsel for LCI immediately interjected and asked him to answer yes or no and not go round in circles since that will unnecessarily prolong the trial. Counsel for the defendants Sampson Lardey Ayenini objected to the line of questioning and said his witness was being heckled.
Counsel for LCI responded to the objection that the picture of the church building and the caption under it speak of Rev Edward Laryea personally financing the building. And that there are no church members in the picture so the question is accordingly focused solely on his financial contributions.
The judge, Justice Comfort Kwasiwor Tasiame intervened and asked the witness to answer “yes” or “no” or yes with an explanation or no with and explanation.
Pastor Laryea continued that, “the membership in Kade helped to build at different stages. So it cannot be answered yes absolutely or no absolutely”.
Counsel for LCI then pushed the witness further “Please limit yourself to tell the Court your financial contribution to the building of the physical building and not the Church congregation.”
Ps Laryea the answered that “My personal contribution to the physical building cannot be easily quantified”. He then went ahead and said the headquarters began financing the building to a point and when the new policy was introduced the headquarters asked the local church to continue the church building.
Witness for the church, Marcel Aboagye had earlier testified under cross examination that the email which introduced the “Become Who You Can Become” Policy was very clear that under the new policy the headquarters will continue to purchase and build church buildings so it totally false that the pastors used their personal funds to build the church buildings. He further added that the defendants have not provided any evidence to support the claim that the pastors used their personal monies to finance the church buildings.
Rev. Laryea further admitted that LCI gifted him with a car while he was a missionary in Kade. He again admitted that under the new policy “You pay your own salary, pay the church’s rent, you can travel to any part of the world as you wish and as often as you wish from your church’s coffers. You can increase your salary as much as you want and take care of your life”
The article also published the picture of the LCI building in Wa and added that that building is a school that Larry Odonkor, one of the former pastors had fully built with his personal finances and that after building it he was transferred and the church coerced him to “hand over the school under duress to the next missionary”
The witness for LCI has earlier vehemently denied that claim and said that that building in the picture was not even in existence while Larry Odonkor was at post in Wa. It was built many years after he left Wa so that publication is palpably false.
The articles published that Faith Makafui Fiakojo built a church building in Fumbisi in the Upper East Region with his personal funds. The articles further posted a picture of the Bolgatanga church and added that Seth Duncan built it together with 2 other churches and laid the foundations for 6 church buildings and a school building; all with his personal fund and the church afterwards broke it’s promise and forcibly transferred them and took over the buildings. The church has vehemently denied these allegations and accused Manasseh of making sensational publications and now unable to provide any evidence to support them in court.
While their witness was being grilled and pounded, Manasseh Azure and all the other defendants were absent from court. On the other hand, LCI was duly represented by an officer of the church.
Larry Odonkor and Oko Mensah are expected to be cross-examined after Ps. Edward Laryea.
The case was adjourned to 28th July 2026 for the conclusion of the cross-examination of Edward Laryea.