The Queen Mother of Kwabenya, Naa Korkoi Dugbatey II has called on His Excellency Nana Akufo Addo to make a swift intervention and halt building on the Atomic land by private individuals or see massive blood spillage in a fortnight.
Speaking at an extremely charged press conference to present their grievance to the new government, the queen mother accused the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission of selling the lands acquired for the sole purpose of developing Ghana’s nuclear energy program without seeking the approval of the Ntow family who she as the head claim own the over 2000 acres of land.
Portions of the statement read:
“The Government of Ghana formerly acquired the Atomic Energy Land with an Executive Instrument (EI 73/75) State Lands Acquisition (Kwabenya Site, Accra)”
“The name of Kwabenya was first mentioned in the history of Gold Coast and the Ashantis by Reverend Carl Christian Reindolf in the 15th Century till date. A Supreme Court Judgement was first given in favour of Odai Ntow family on 30th July, 1901, and again on 3rd May1904 in the suit titled Bosompem and Another verses Martei and Others”
“On 3rd July, 1973, government acquired portions of Kwabenya lands as Ghana Atomic Energy Commission facility for the construction of Atomic Bomb Reactor”
Displaying court documents that supposedly granted them legitimacy over portions of the lands and ordering the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission to release 20% of the land to the Odai Ntow family, Naa Dugbatey accused the GAEC of deliberate refusal to respect the decision of the court and illegally selling the lands to Churches and Ibrahim Mahama, brother of former President, John Dramani Mahamama.
According to the Naa Dugbatey II, Ibrahim Mahama intends to build a shopping Mall on the land.
She however pleaded with President Mahama to stop all works on the filled and conduct investigations into the matter or the Odai Ntow Family with their youth will take matters into their own hands, fight for their property even at the peril of their lives and that of those who stand in their way.
She lamented that even though their father handed massive wealth over to them, their youth have not benefited and majority of them remain hopeless as to what the future hold for them.
“As the mother everyone looks up to, even if it means dying to secure the future of my people, I am willing to do that.”
According to her, during Nana Akufo Addo,s time as the Attorney General and Minister of Foreign Affairs, he showed massive commitment to resolving the problem and reached advanced stage.
However, she said “everything grinded to a halt when the NDC won and took over the governance of this nation in 2009.
She blamed Hon Collins Dauda, former Minister of Lands and Forestry and Mr Kwao Sackey, former MCE of the area for their involvement in the land sales and disputes on owners.
When the Director General of Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, Prof B.J.B. Nyarko was contacted for his side of the story, he denied every form of involvement in land sales.
According to him, GAEC commission has no mandate to sell lands and at no point in time have they ever over stepped their boundaries to deal in land sales and therefore the claims by the Queen Mother are completely false and should be treated with contempt.