A former Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Inusah Fuseini, has said he was not party to the extension of Achimota Forest land from the initial 118 acres to 198.501 acres ceded to the Owoo family.
“I could not have varied the initial grant because I am fully aware of the implications of Article 58 of the Constitution of Ghana and could not have placed myself in that awkward position” he said in a statement copied to Adomonline.com.
The former Tamale Central MP’s comment comes on the back of a statement from the Lands and Natural Resources Ministry which claimed Mr. Fuseini was aware the state agreed to extend the agreement from 181 acres to over 360.
But the former Minister maintains he was unaware about any subsequent attempts to vary the initial grant of acres to the Owoo family.
Hon. Fuseini stressed the press release by the Ministry contains some incorrect assertions and plain misrepresentation of facts skewed against his person and the role he played between the period January 2013 to June 2014.
“It bears repeating that I was not a party to the alleged extension of the initial grant of 118 acres to the Owoo Family. My letter of 4th April 2014 to the Lands Commission was in respect of the original grant of 118 acres of land to the Owoo family as captured in the last paragraph of the said letter.
“That letter read together with the original Lease executed by the Forestry Commission in favour of the Owoo Family will leave no doubt in the mind of anyone reading those two documents that they are referable to the same 118 acres of land granted the Owoo Family pursuant to a cabinet directive. I could not have acted otherwise,” parts of a statement issued by Mr Fuseini read.
He supported calls for the reversal of the declassification of portions of the Achimota forest reserve as contained in the Executive Instrument (E.I) 144.
Hon. Inusah Fuseini also called for an independent enquiry to be launched into these matters to ascertain the truth.