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Achimota School

‘Achimota School lands not given out for development’

The Lands Commission has said it has not issued title to any individual or group to develop lands belonging to the Achimota School.

It said it had also not carried out plotting of the land in the area and, therefore, it would be illegal for any individual or group to develop the land.

The Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission, Dr Wilfred Anim-Odame, stated this when the management of the Achimota School, officials of the Lands Commission, as well as some ministers of state appeared before the Parliamentary Select Committee on Lands and Forestry in furtherance of a petition written to Parliament by old students of the school last year appealing to the House to assist in stopping private developers from encroaching on the school's lands.

The management of the school was led by the headmistress, Ms Beatrice Adom.

Accompanying her was the President of the Old Students Association, Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana and Mr Kwesi Fynn, a legal practitioner.

The ministers present were the Attorney-General, Mrs Marieta Brew Appiah-Opong and the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Nii Osah Mills.

Mr Anim-Odame said any development of the land must be preceded by plotting and the issuing of a land title and until that was done, nobody could and should, even if the land was theirs, develop it.

Background

The Achimota School lands were acquired by ordinance by the colonial government from the Osu stool in 1921 and an amount of 4,000 pounds paid to the elders of the stool.

However, a few years ago, the Osu Mankralo and a few elders went to court and averred that more than 170 acres of the land was not being used for the purpose for which the colonial government acquired it and, therefore, it should revert to the original owners.

A legal officer of the Lands Commission, according to records available at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, instead of informing the Attorney-General to enable the government prepare a solid defence, failed to do so and went to court to state, among other things, that the state had no evidence to adduce in defence and, therefore, the court could go ahead and make a ruling.

The court then ruled in favour of the Osu Mankralo and handed the land back to them.

The elders of Osu then proceeded to sell the land to some private developers who have begun developing the area in earnest.

Alarmed at the development, the old students of the school petitioned Parliament and the President, Mr John Mahama, to intervene and stop the encroachment.

Achimota School has trained three former heads of state namely, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Flt Lt J.J Rawlings and Prof. J. E. Atta Mills.

Many of the county's foremost lawyers, doctors, engineers, civil and public servants, also attended that school.

Bizarre happenings

Nii Osah Mills said the behaviour of the attorney who represented the Lands Commission was bizarre and beyond comprehension.

He was of the view that the state had a case and had acquired the land lawfully for the purposes of establishing a school.

He said that purpose had not changed and, therefore, the argument made by the elders of Osu, if had been opposed, would not have stood the legal test.

He said whether the actions of the attorney of the Lands Commission was deliberate or not, it was not clear.

Mrs Appiah-Opong, on her part, said her outfit had filed an application at the court praying that the decision be set aside and declared null and void.

Current situation

Ms Adom alleged that the Owu and the Okuwey families at Osu were engaged in the sale of the school's lands.

She said those families sent marauding men to the school campus and added that they sometimes vandalised the vehicles of the members of staff of the school, adding that the most recent one happened last Monday.

She appealed to Parliament, the law enforcement agencies and other well-meaning Ghanaians to assist in apprehending the hoodlums and prosecuting them.

She appealed for assistance to construct a wall around the school and urged the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) to assist in that direction.

Chairman

The Chairman of the committee, Mr Amadu Seidu, said the committee would visit the school premises and ascertain the facts for itself.

After that, he said the committee would brief the plenary and a decision would be taken.

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