Expose beneficiaries of Achimota forest – GII to State agencies

The Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) is urging State Investigative bodies to investigate and expose persons who have allotted portions of the Achimota forest to themselves.

“This is a forest reserve that has a significant impact on the people of Ghana and so if individuals already have been assigned plots of the land in the forest and the government is telling us this is not the case. Then we should all be worried and know under what law we decided to dispose of these lands.

“If it is then who and who are the beneficiaries, today we know of Sir John getting about five acres. What about others who have, we need to know. Freedom of information is a right to the people of Ghana so let us know the individuals who don’t have the interest of Ghana at heart,” he told Joshua Kodjo Mensah on Starr Today Monday May 23, 2022.

She continued: “It is not one, there may be many that we may not know of and it is not funny at all. The Lands Ministry and other offices can investigate this. There is no reason that EOCO and the rest cannot investigate this. There are a lot of State Agencies who have the duty to ensure that they put the doubt on the people of Ghana to rest and look into this issue.

“Not just for Sir John but for people who do not have the interest of this country at heart who have decided to grab the State lands particularly the forest at Achimota which we all know. So it is not only the Land Ministry, the Office of the Special Prosecutor can take this up, EOCO and others as well.”

Background

The Lands and Natural Resources Minister Samuel Abu Jinapor says the Achimota Lands mentioned in the last Will of the late Chief Executive of the Forestry Commission Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie popularly known as Sir John will not be given to the beneficiaries.

“I, as Minister for Lands & Natural Resources, have directed the Lands and Forestry Commission to deem any ownership of lands, both in the Achimota Forest and the Sakumono Ramsar Site by the late Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie as void,” the Minister said in a statement Tuesday.

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The Minister also said the lands will continue to be property of the state despite the fact that the Will is being contested in court.

The Minister also reiterated details of the land acquisition cannot be found at the Lands Commissions.

“Further checks at the Lands and the Forestry Commissions, the repositories of the records of the lands in question, show no record of ownership of Lands at, the Achimota Forest or the Sakumono Ramsar Site, by the late Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie,” the statement said.

The Ministry had earlier said it took a serious view of the reports that the former.

“The Ministry takes a very serious view of the allegations and has requested all documents relating to the lands in question, as part of an initial inquiry to ascertain the veracity of the claims. Considering that the issues that form the basis of the allegations predate the tenure of the current Minister, Hon. Samuel A. Jinapor, MP, it is important that he is seized with the full facts to enable him take appropriate action, if, indeed, there is any merit in the claims,” portions of the statement by the Ministry said.

The alleged Will has provoked anger among some Ghanaians.

Source:Starrfm.com.gh