Mahama 'family and friends' grabbing ga lands -La Youth Angry

The youth of La in the Greater Accra Region are angry with President John Dramani Mahama for facilitating the grabbing of Ga lands by people who are very close to him.

"Sadly enough, our brothers and sisters around and within the corridors of power have lost their voices relative to issues affecting the Ga-Dangme people, which silence we find as condoning the raw deal government is serving our people," Augustine Nii Amoanai, Chairman of the Coalition of La Youth Association, stated yesterday at a press conference.

Independent investigations done by this paper show that the so-called family and friends of the Mahama administration, including Cabinet Ministers, are grabbing Ga lands left, right and centre.

The latest is the Accra Hearts of Oak Park, next to the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum. Government has mysteriously, and compulsorily, acquired the land with the obvious aim to sell it for peanuts to a company set up by a person very much in the inner circle.

The Minister of Lands and Mineral Resources, Nii Osah Mills, is confronted with a lega battle for ignoring a court injunction to go ahead with a conveyance of huge parcels of land belonging to the Aviation Authority.

The beneficiaries are known to be at the very top of the presidency and this has not only angered the staff of Aviation Authority but the Ga Chiefs and people.
Another lucrative parcel of land that the "greedy bunch" have set their teeth into is the large chunk from the southern end of the Airport City which they intend to extend to cover all the piece of land covering the DVLA to Max Mart.

Then there is that large parcel of land which was owned by GIMPA and has now been claimed by a key player in and around the presidency.

Among the most sensitive pieces of land claimed by the Mahama family and friends brigade are the military lands behind the airport and next to Burma Camp.
The biggest casualty to this assault on Ga lands has been the Cantonments Area, which has seen about 70% of the state lands left sold off.

The Coalition of La Youth Association has accused the Mahama government of failing to sustain and consolidate the gains made by previous governments on Ga-Dangme land issues.

According to the group, the president and the NDC government have thrown caution to the wind and decided to roll back the gains made previously in ensuring that the Ga-Dangme people had control over their lands, and with the connivance of the Ghana Armed Forces and the Lands Commission, continue to steal Ga-Dangme lands.
At yesterday's press conference to pour out their anger, Augustine Nii Amoanai disclosed that the people of Ga-Dangme had witnessed many unjust treatments in the past concerning undue land grabbing, leading to an action by the late President Mills to redistribute the lands to their allodia owners, but the move failed to see the light of day when President Mahama took over as President.

He said even though people have high hopes and confidence in the President who is the Commander-in-chief of the Ghana Armed Forces to order some level of sanity on the unruly behaviour of the Military, the President is rather supporting their activities, thereby making lives uncomfortable for people living on their legally acquired lands.
He stated that the Mahama government is fully aware of the fact that the Ghana Armed Forces has arbitrarily stolen and destroyed farmlands with the full support of one Ibrahim Mahama.
According to Nii Amoanai, "It has also been alleged that one Ibrahim Mahama is part of the syndicate engaged in this plundering of our lands."

He further alleged that the Military had extended its illegal activities into virgin areas which have never been under dispute, against the Attorney-General's legal advice asking the Military to halt activities on the land until all acquisition processes have been consummated.

According to Nii Amoanai, a syndicate which is alleged to be headed by Mr Mahama is operating on the Adenta Aviation lands even though issues about the said land are in court.

"Our information is that the entrenched position of the current MP for Adenta, Hon. Ashie Moore against the activities of the syndicate led the machination against his re-election to represent the constituency," he added.

The group also said the Mahama government is planning to demolish all structures from the Police barracks to the 37 Lorry Park which will be relocated to the Kawukudi Park under what government has termed 'Airport Extension Project, Phase II.'

He demanded: "We expect details of the project to be disclosed to us with the accompanying compensation arrangements to the allodia owners of the lands affected."
Also, the Mahama overnment is contemplating on selling the Ghana International Trade Fair, and the La youth group is demanding that the move be aborted until all issues relating to the compensation are sorted out.

Nii Amoanai also revealed several attempts by the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Nii Afotey-Agbo, to commission land guards who, on countless occasions, terrorise the people of Amrahia and Ashie, dispossessing the rightful owners of their land.
According to him, President Mahama and his NDC government have marginalised the people of Ga-Dangme for too long, as it has exhibited complacency in extracting Ghana Armed Forces, government officials and state agencies' illegal and unruly activities on Ga-Dangme lands.

"The government that does not listen to its people is not worth following. We conclude by saying that the so-called rule of law and democracy is rather an empty rhetoric and not operational under the current circumstances since there is freedom but no justice on Ga-Dangme matters," he said.

The group has therefore given government a one-week ultimatum to act on their concerns, warning that gross neglect of the Ga-Dangme people would result in drastic actions from them.