AMA causes uproar at Osu


The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) led a battalion of soldiers and policemen to demolish structures and properties located behind the Osu Koala shopping center near Danquah circle on Sunday evening without the consent and notice of the Osu Paramount chief and his council of elders.

The Osu traditional council was later on told by some affected victims that the Accra Mayor and the Municipal Chief Executive of La-Dadekotopon (LADMA) Municipal Assembly has instructed that all properties situated along that lane be evacuated because that part of land belongs to LADMA.

The structures includes shopping containers, wooden structures, chop bars, restaurants closely to about 50 shops.

The Paramount chief of Osu Traditional Area, Nii Okwei Kinka Dowuona VI has treated the matter with a pinch of salt claiming that those lands are part and parcel of the Osu stool land.

Nii Okwei Kinka Dowuona VI, who is also the President of Osu Traditional Council has expressed his misgivings adding that, “what they (AMA and LADMA) have done is a recipe for something disastrous.”

The Paramount chief has therefore called on Electoral Commission (EC), Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, and the appropriate authorities to re-visit the legal Instrument (LI) to present to the two, the true and correct demarcation boundaries of the disputed land.

Considering the truth of the matter, at the Municipal level or political level, where the electoral demarcation spelt out in the LI, and that which was used to form LADMA, LADMA are now claiming ownership of such pieces of land.

But on the traditional perspective, according to Nii Okwei Kinka Dowuona VI, that boundary belongs to the Osu stool lands and therefore, they would not sit aloof for LADMA to collect tolls from their traditional area to develop theirs.

According to him, they share boundaries with La starting from the La polyclinic starting through to the Osu children’s home passing through some parts of Cantonments leading to the American Embassy.

He said LADMA have encroached on their lands based on political electoral demarcations noting that “for electoral demarcation to be able to conform with their traditional demarcation, if per the LI, part of their lands have gone into ours, it doesn’t give them mandate to be collecting tolls and eliminating structures on that land.”

He has therefore called on LADMA indicating that the doors of the traditional council are always opened and therefore they should have come to engage them.

“We wouldn’t want those things to mar the Better Ghana Agenda II,” the Paramount chief warned.

The Chief noted that the boundary line clearly shown that that part of land has been their property since time immemorial therefore, the authorities must act quickly to rectify the current situation in order to prevent it from escalating.

He has urged the media to seek clarification on matters relating to the Osu stool in order to prevent possible conflicts and loose talks from persons who are not mandated to make any public comments on behalf of the Stool.

He said this at a press conference held at his palace to register their displeasure over the actions of the AMA and LADMA which has caused severe disarray in the traditional area.

Hon. Benjamin Kotey Nee Quaye, Assemblyman for Osu Doku Electoral Area added, stating that at that very moment when the demolishing started he tried to intervene but he was brushed aside by personnel who were supervising the exercise.

By Abubakari Seidu Ajarfor, [email protected]

Comments:
This article has 0 comment, leave your comment.