AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNIT SAGA …

By Citizen News Desk

The controversy surrounding an affordable housing project at Odumasi/Nsakina in the Amasaman District of the Greater Accra Region appears to be far from over as Nii Amardey Asamani, a member of the Odumasi, Acquah and Asamani families issues a stern warning to Mr. Joe Addo-Yobo, Chief Executive Officer of Adicopa Farms, to be wary of the use of land guards at the site in question.

Sounding very angry and irritated by reports of the presence of land guards at the site, Mr. Asamani, who spoke to The Citizen on phone, challenged Mr. Addo-Yobo to resort to legal and acceptable means of making his case rather than the use of land guards who would only worsen his already bad case in the matter involving him and the families.

“Tell him (Addo-Yobo) that we are aware of the deployment of land guards to the site so he should be careful because the families won’t tolerate any foul means to institute an illegality in this matter. We are ready to match him boot-for-boot so he should go to the law courts to make his case rather than what he is trying to do,” he said. Mr. Asamani said the only person who could alter the agreement between Adicopa and the families was the late Nii Achia Quarshie, who represented the families when the agreement was signed. He stated that since Nii Achia Quarshie died mysteriously, no one had been authorized to change the agreement between the two parties, so any document purported to have been signed by the family, besides the original one, is fictitious.

He reminded Mr. Addo-Yobo that the agreement clearly stated that the land was leased to his company for farming purposes but not for real estate projects; therefore, any decision to change the conditions can only be taken by the families and not through any other means. He wondered how Adicopa could transfer the land to Agu Resources or the state when it is a leased land.

Government’s attempt to support a private estate company, Agu Resources Ltd, to construct an affordable housing unit at Odumasi/Nsakina in the Amasaman District of the Greater Accra Region has faced stiff opposition from the original owners of the land who claim the company releasing the land for the project does not have the mandate to do so since the land was leased by its owners (Odumase, Acquah and Asamani Families) for farming purposes.

The families maintain that, any decision to transfer the land or change the purpose for which it was leased should be taken by the families but not the lessee whose tenure has a time limit. The controversy appears not to end now as the parties trade claims and counter-claims. Stay tuned.

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