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Regional News of Sunday, 12 January 2014

Source: Mohammed Saani Ibrahim -The Accra Times

Kwabenya sitting on tenterhooks

...As royal family demonstrates against intended demolition exercise Elders and members of the Abbey We family of Kwabenya in the Greater Accra Region have demonstrated against an intended demolition exercise by Nuumo George Ankonu.

According to Nii Okpoti II, Head of the Okpoti We, who addressed the press in Kwabenya, Nuumo George Ankonu once led the family to court at a time their assets were alienated and got judgement in the family’s favour, but things turned out different when Nuumo George Ankonu tried to usurp the position of the vacant Kwabenya Kingship.

He enumerated that Nuumo George Ankonu is laying claim to the Odai Ntow Family lands by claiming to have secured a Writ of Possession and a demolition order to pull down all structures that are occupying the 258 acres of land belonging to the family.

However, Nii Okpoti indicated that although Nuumo Ankonu led the family at a time they were facing some challenges as regards their landed property, the Odai Ntow family is made up of four royal houses who are signatories to documents attesting to any transaction entered into by the Odai Ntow family.

He mentioned that, Nuumo George Ankonu took the judgement the family got from the court to his house and refused to consult the four ruling houses on further developments as far as issues surrounding their land is concerned.

“….Nuumo George Ankonu took the judgement to his house and he is yet to meet with the members of the seven houses that form the Abbey We, to brief them on the implications of the judgement and the way forward,” he said.

Nii Okpoti also noted that “Quiet unfortunately and disgracefully, the presiding judge ordered him and his legal Counsel to do the right traditional thing by going back to Abbey We Queen mother for the traditional introduction and her acceptance of him before being accepted or having the Abbey We headship conferred on him,” he stated.

According to Nii Okpoti, Nuumo George Ankonu intends to bring chaos to Kwabenya as he intends to set the town on a way to retrogression.

“He wants to destroy all developmental projects to our holy village of Kwabenya all due to greed if not dementia,” Nii Okpoti alleges.

He also claimed that Nuumo George Ankonu is still lobbying the elders of Abbey We to accept him in the traditional position as Head of the Family.

In an interview with the Queen mother of Kwabenya traditional area, Naa Korkoi Dugbatey II, she averred that the demolition of all the structures on the said 258 acre land will bring lots of hardship on residents as it will also stall development of the area.

She however called on government, the police and the relevant authorities to intervene and investigate the authenticity of the demolition order which Nuumo George Ankonu claimed to have, adding that a search conducted at the Court indicates that no demolition order has been given and also the Writ of Possession that was granted was done in the name of the Nii Odai family and not in the name of Nuumo George Ankonu.