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| Augustine Nii Nai and leaders of La Youth Coalition addresses media |
The
Coalition of La Youth Associations and the Board of Trustees of the Dadekotopon
Development Trust have asked the Ghana Armed Forces and the Government of Ghana
to return all parcels of land that are no longer intended for the purposes for
which they were acquired.
According
to them, land that was given out for military purposes are currently being
packaged and sold to foreign companies and private businessmen without due
regard to the owners of the land.
They
have accused the Military of “fomenting acts of Terror and brutalities against
the local people.”
Speaking
in very angry terms at a press conference at La in Accra, Augustine Nii Nai,
leader of the La Youth Coalition that holds a membership of more than 3000 said
“In 1938, the colonial government acquired 798 acres of land for the
construction of an Aerodrome which later became a hospitality facility for the
military during the 2nd World War and has also become the domicile
of the Ghana Armed Forces.”
According
to him, in a display of solidarity with the government after independence and
in cooperation with the call to nation building and as a kind gesture, the
progressive people of La Dadekotopon sacrificed huge portions of land for the
promotion of agriculture and education.
He
said the La people gave land for the construction of the George Padmore Research
Farm, the Amrahia Diary Project and the Animal Research Farm. In the fields of
education, lands were also granted for the establishment of the University of
Ghana, the University of Professional Studies, the Institute of Local
Government Studies, the Accra College of Education and the Presby Boys
Secondary School.
“In
the face of these generous contributions we have made to the development of
this nation without the payment of royalties to the traditional council, our
farmers, spiritual leaders and young men and women are oppressed and treated
with contempt and gross insubordination” he said.
Colonel
Gyeke Asante, Director of Legal Services of the Ghana Armed Forces, in a
response to a letter written by La Mantse, Nii Kpobi Tettey Tsuru III on the 2nd
of December 2015, to the Chief of Defence Staff drawing his attention to “the
devastation and the environmental hazard that a division of the Ghana Army was
causing by winning sand at Kpeletso-an area outside of the boundaries of the
military, warned that “The La Traditional Council had no natural or legal right
over the said land and that the current activities carried out by the Military
on the land is consistent with the purposes for which the land was acquired.”
Negotiations For the
Acquisition of Land for a Military Buffer
Following
a request for the acquisition of land situate at East Dadekotopon by the Ghana
Armed Forces for the establishment of a safety and security buffer zone for the
Ghana Military on the 8th of July 2014, the Attorney General,
Marrieta Brew, directed the composition of a team composed of the Government
officials and representatives of the East Dadekotopon Development Trust.
The
government team included Dr Dominic Ayine, Deputy Attorney General, Maj.
General B.G Saagbul, Cdre B.F Asante and Cdre S.W Anim amongst others. Mr E.
Odoi-Yemo, Mr Ebenezer Lassey-Quaye, Mr Joseph Adjei and L.S.N Akuetteh
represented the East Dadekotopon Development Trust.
In
a letter dated 7th April 2015, addressed to Col. M. K Gyekye-Asante
and the Directorate of Legal Services of the Ghana Armed Forces, Mr Dominic
Ayine, Deputy Attorney General, stated that “It was abundantly evident from the
negotiations and from all the documentations made available for that purpose
that the Ghana Armed Forces have not disputed the fact that the land the
subject matter of the negotiations belongs to the East Dadekotopon Development
Trust.”
Justice
Oppong in a ruling on a case brought before the High Court between the East
Dadekotopon Development Trust and the Attorney General stated “that although it
is the duty of the state to acquire any land under the State Lands Act as
provided by law, it must pay due compensation to the owners thereof.”
He
further stated that “until the state paid the compensation, it has no business
to act in a manner inconsistent with plaintiff’s (East Dadekotopon Development
Trust) ownership of the land.”
In
the circumstances, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice advised that the
Ghana Armed Forces commence the formal processes if it intended to proceed with
the acquisition of the 2, 456 acres of land for the creation of the security
buffer zone, to pay promptly adequate compensation to the current owners of the
land respecting the legitimate security and public purpose to which the land
will be put.
The
letter also stated that “until the compensation has been paid, the Ghana Armed
Forces must not engage in acts of trespass to the land or by means of the use
of force seek to prevent the current land owners from developing their land.”
In
spite of the advice from the Attorney General, a troupe of soldiers numbering
200 blocked a bus conveying a group of journalists to the aforementioned site
last Wednesday when the bus was ordered to divert course when it reached the
Palmwine Junction within the La metropolis.
According
to the La Youth Coalition and the Dadekotopon Development Trust, the Military
has encroached upon the 2, 456 acres of land and construction works are
currently on going in blatant violation of the ruling of the High Court and the
advise of the Attorney General.
Salomey
Pattison, a protesting member of La Youth Coalition expressed disgust and
displeasure when she stated that: “ The Military no longer operates with
dignity and discipline. They are looting our lands and handing them over to
private people to build expensive houses which we, the owners of the land
cannot afford. The land they are seeking to take is not for any security
buffer, they are taking it for the rich men, and private estate companies and
we shall fight this corruption of the Military with all our might. They are
taking advantage of the Military uniforms to do business and that is a crime
against the people.”
Editorial
HISTORIC
VISIT
The
recent visit of President Barack Obama to Cuba is historic by all accounts and
it is an important milestone in the struggles of the Cuban people for an end to
the senseless hostility from the Empire.
It
shows that the proud people of Cuba have been right all along when they made
the point that it is possible to have different ways of life and still be
friends.
What
is worrying about the visit is the pretension of Obama that he is doing the
Cuban people a favour which needs to be repaid by abandoning the revolutionary
cause.
The
point is that Cuba could not have gotten where it is today without the
revolution.
It is the revolution which guarantees access
to health care and education to all Cubans, something which the empire has not
been able to achieve for its people.
If
Obama thinks that he can sweet talk Cubans into abandoning the revolution and
return to the gambling house of imperialism, then he is seriously mistaken.
The Cuban people are wide awake and they love
their freedom.
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