Land has become one of the hottest commodities in the twin-city of Sekondi/Takoradi metropolis. People disregard the plans for land use or what public lands have been earmarked for and have been encroaching seriously on them.
Some of the areas which have been seriously encroached upon are the military lands, especially the land which has been reserved around the Takoradi Airport, which serves as a buffer zone between communities close to the airport and the runway.
The land was acquired by the government for the Ministry of Defence in the 1960s and properly demarcated with signposts with the inscription “Ministry of Defence - Ghana Armed Forces (MOD- GAF)” indicating the intended purpose for the land.
Encroachers are fast developing the restricted area which is very close to the runway, ignoring the security risks they are exposing themselves and their families or tenants to. Others are also farming on the land.
Maize planted on the farms has also attracted many small birds which usually fly in flocks after feeding on the crop. Experts have warned the encroachers against such practices because they are exposing themselves to great danger especially in the event of a disaster.
Bird-hazard, according to some pilots, is mostly caused by these small flocks of birds that fly in the path the aircraft and which can damage an aircraft engine worth millions of dollars.
The settlers on these restricted lands also rear animals which also stray onto the runway.
Others also use the runway as thoroughfare because they see it as the shortest route to the central business district.
When the military attempt to enforce discipline in accordance with their regulations at the base, members of the public accuse them of molesting their civilian brothers.
The Takoradi Airport is the only place in the country which has been well planned and designated for the training of pilots for the Ghana Air Force. Therefore, a large parcel of land was reserved for training purposes in the 1960s.
Flight experts say the reserved land was purposely meant for pilots to crush land in the event of a mishap after their planes take off.
Also, when the unexpected happens during training and the plane crush lands within the reserved or the restricted area, it is expected that no harm will be caused to members of the communities around the airport.
The Daily Graphic found during a visit to the restricted area around the airport that encroachers have put up houses in the demarcated area reserved for military use only.
Although high-rise buildings are not allowed around airports, some developers have built storey buildings while others are also winning sand in the area and have constructed roads across the restricted area.
A military base is a facility, settlement, reservation, or installation that shelters military equipment and personnel. It may also contain large concentrations of military supplies and other logistics.
The bases are restricted to the military alone and only authorised personnel are allowed entry.
Interestingly the encroachers claim that the lands belong to them and that when purchasing the lands they did not know the danger they were exposing themselves to.
The Ministry of Information and National Orientation and National Commission on Civic Education have a lot of work to do to educate the populace on why they should keep off military zones.
The Ministry of Defence, aware of the dangers involved, therefore, created a buffer zone to guide against public intrusion on their training grounds and to ensure uninterrupted training exercises. The military bases usually have housing units, mess, churches, gymnasium, sports courts, schools, parks, etc. to ensure that they have the peace of mind to defend the nation when the need arises.
Following the oil find in the Western Region, however, the demand for land is great and people have started encroaching on the restricted military zone and claiming ownership of the lands. Many of the encroachers are said to have petitioned people in high places to press upon the military to allow them to continue their development in the restricted areas.
It is about time the public realised the importance of training pilots for the Ghana Air Force and avoided any interruptions.
One interesting thing is that the encroachers have titles to the land they are developing.
When the Daily Graphic contacted the Western Regional office of the Lands Commission to find out if the office was aware of the encroachment in the restricted area, the acting Regional Lands Officer, Mr S. Hans Jorie, responded in the affirmative.
He said a portion of it was initially government land but that had not been appropriated and urged the Ghana Air Force to move in quickly to acquire it.
Mr Jorie said they had had discussions with the military and advised them accordingly, adding that on October 20, 2008, the commission wrote to the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly requesting it to suspend the granting of building permits to developers in the area.
The acting land officer said after careful deliberation the commission recommended that steps should be taken to have that portion of the land which is not part of the government land acquired for the Air Force.
Therefore, “until acquisition is completed, granting of building permits for the development of that portion should cease”, the commission advised the Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly.
He said the letter was the outcome of the meeting and based on the realisation that a portion at the Airport Ridge was considered a threat to the airfield since it was too close to it.
“We will move into action when the military puts in application for the acquisition of that portion of the land which is not part of government land, to give the military total control over the area,” he said.
Asked if that would not constitute an injustice to people who had legally acquired part of that land, he said, “If it is in the interest of the people, the larger public, the state has no option than to acquire it.”
He said the issue had been dragging for long and that in 1996 the then Takoradi Station Commander called for their assistance for the place to be properly demarcated.
The commission has thrown the ball onto the court of the Ministry of Defence and the government as well as the Military High Command for urgent action to halt the encroachment and that must be done fast.
To properly secure the area before the commencement of work on the new airport planned for Takoradi and the completion of the wall around it, it would be important for the ministries of Defence and Aviation to move in to save the situation.
That aside, the public should be aware that the suspension of further development projects at Airport Ridge is in the larger interest of public and flight safety.
1 comment:
In your attempt at putting some amount of spinning on this case, you distort some basic concrete facts. You say in one breath the State acquired this tract of land in the 60s and then go on to say the Ministry of Defence is preparing to acquire all the land now. Does this mean the tract developed by these private owners have not been acquired yet by the State? If so, on what grounds does the Airforce for now interfere in its development.
Or is it a case of my next door neighbour's house is too close to mine for comfort, therefore he has encroached on my property? The Gov't has the right to acquire the plots in question,yes, but until then the land belongs to their rightful owners.
As the owners of the building which you displayed in your article, we wish to believe you will give equal publicity to our views. The plots of land were acquired from the Egodzi Stool. After the usual search, the indentures were prepared,approved by the Lands Dept. Drawings were submitted and building permits issued at the end of the processing. Construction then started and nobody showed up until one building reached the roofing level. When the Airforce personnel showed up at this stage, we refered the case to the High Court. After a lenghty trial,at which the Airforce and the State were represented by a State Attorney, the court ruled in our favour. The Airforce could have appealled against this decision if they had any grounds.Or negotiations could have been started to resolve the problem amicably instead of seeking to demonize us as in your article. Remember we are also true Ghanaians who have the interest of our country very much at heart. It was for this reason that we appealled to the Commander-in-Chief for redress. And to put in some time frame, we have been owners of these plots of land for more than four years. To link this case to the recent discovery of oil is therefore in not very right.
Post a Comment