The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, on September 15, 2025, led a sombre processing to Bogyawe at the Manhyia Palace to attend the “Doteyie” for the late Asantehemaa, Nana Konadu Yiadom III, whose passing has plunged the Asante Kingdom into a state of mourning.
The event, attended by paramount chiefs, clan leaders and many subjects, followed a Palace- imposed ban on all other funerals within the Asante Kingdom to honor the legal of the late Asantehemaa.
Dressed in pitch black cloth with a black head, the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II in a sorrowful mood rode in a palanquin to the grounds where funeral rites were held for his biological sister and Queen mother of Asanteman, the Late Nana Konadu Yiadom III.
A sea of mourners in black clothes converged on the Manhyia Palace to observe funeral rites of the Asantehemaa, Nana Konadu Yiadom III.
Dignitaries who attended the funeral to console the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu ll, the brother of the Asantehemaa, today, include Former President John Agyekum Kufuor, representatives of the various political parties, the clergy, telecommunication companies, state institutions and the general public.
The entry of the former President Kufuor received thunderous applause from a large section of the crowd of mourners at the venue.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II set the funeral grounds agog when he arrived in grand style, riding in a palanquin and chewing cola nut (abeseno) to indicate that he was in a state of mourning.
The milling crowd surged towards him to cheer him up.
The Asantehemaa, who was the biological sister of the Otumfuo, was born in 1927 and enstooled Queenmother of Asanteman in 2017.
It was a hectic day for the security personnel to control the crowd who surged forward and got closer to the dignitaries on the dais.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu’s entry was heralded by the firing of muskets and the burning of palm fronds, while his executioners had smeared their bodies with red clay and carried the trunk of a tree to which were attached some pieces of cloths.
In accordance with Asante custom, Otumfuo sat in state and received delegations and shook hands with hundreds of people, ranging from political party leaders, captains of business, heads of international organisations, religious leaders and traditional leaders from across the length and breadth of the country.
A large number of paramount chiefs and their sub-chiefs from the Asante Kingdom all sat in state dressed in splendid ” kuntunkuni’ (black cloth) showing that they were in mourning.
They brought the rich and time-tested Asante culture to bear on the rites.
People from all walks of life also trooped to the grounds in their mourning clothes, giving the police a hectic time to control the crowd.
