President Prioritises Peace and Conflict Resolution: Identifies Land and Chieftaincy Disputes – Codification as root cause..

President John Dramani Mahama met with Chiefs and heads of Security Services prior to going to Bawku and Nareligu to personally initiate the Resolution of the Conflict.

They pledged their support to the President who indicated that he will in the coming days appoint key ministers including the Defence, Interior and National Ministers, National Security Coordinator and Director of the BNI among others to begin implementing his plan for peace, stability and development…

The list of Regional Ministers have been released, other Ministerial nominees will be released in the coming days…

In fact, a day after the revocation of the appointment of the Minerals Income and Investment Fund, a female replacement has been appointed.

The President promised to make appointments to the various that of the Security Services in the coming days…

The President was spot on in his analysis of the problem which is not limited to Bawku and Nareligu.

I can personally relate to the very complex issues at play, which are resolvable given the consultative posture and personal involvement the President has adopted.

I hail from La-Kowe-Lumorshishi, the Royal Family of Akornor We which is the La Stool House, I am from the bloodline of the La Mantses and a son of the late La Dzasetse.

I can confirm that President John Dramani Mahama’s analysis is spot on in the peculiar situation in La, as it is true in Bawku and elsewhere.

Whereas there is the absence of war in La, unlike Bawku;

La can become a perfect template for the resolution of Land-related Chieftaincy Crisis while streamlining the Land Administration regime with a view to enhancing development and creating sustainable jobs.

The vacancies in the Royal Family namely an Kowe Akutsotse, La Dzasetse and La Mantse resulting from deaths and the delay in replacing these key Royal Officeholders despite the knowledge of the lines of Succession is very troubling…

At the heart of the La Chieftaincy Dispute is the Land matter as some persons are keen to keep the status quo to be exploited in the absence of the La Mantse who is the Occupant of the La Stool who together with the Dzasetse are Custodians of Stool Property including the prime La Lands which are the subject of Looting…

The value of these La Stool Lands is indicative of how high the stakes are, which is influenced by the “powerful players” who are keen on Looting the La Stool Lands.

La spans five (5) Municipal and District Assemblies and hosts almost all the Embassies and the Security Services in Ghana including the Burma Camp as well as the key installations such as the Kotoka International Airport, Educational institutions including major Universities and Secondary Schools as well as Health facilities such as the University of Ghana Medical Centre, Bank of Ghana Hospital among others.

The potential for the La Chieftaincy vacuum to escalate into a crisis can be easily difused by sanitising the La Land situation.

The volume of money flowing through the ILLICIT LAND TRANSACTIONS including the fraudulent allocation of State Lands and Bungalows makes this a national security threat especially as there is evidence of the laundering of money being the proceeds of Corruption and Galamsey.

The legal framework exits in ACT 1036 for the eradication of the phenomenon as the new Land Law demands transparency and accountability in all Land Transactions and requires all Stools to set up Stool Lands Secretariats prior to any Land Transaction becoming lawful.

La which has suffered the most from the Looting of its lands, is the PERFECT PILOT for the rollout of the digitized database of the Lands Commission’s Land Administration Project (LAP) as its map has already been digitized by the Lands Commission as has its headquarters on La Land thus proximity and cost issues are minimised.

The La Stool Lands Secretariat is by law required to register all La Stool Lands and operationallyexpected to share the digitized database of the Lands Commission to ensure Concurrent Approval of all La Stool Land transactions, which must mandatorily be done through the La Bank to ensure that there is an electronic footprint or paper trail of all La Land Transactions.

The La Bank will have an office at the La Stool Lands Secretariat premises and has plans to establish satellite offices and branches in the various larger communities for easy transactions via the Banking system just as is done at the DVLA offices.

All La Land Transactions will be initiated with payment at the La Bank and terminate with the Seal of the La Stool affixed by the La Mantse upon proof of final payment or commitment to make such payment verified by the La Bank and the Lands Commission.

The IT system of the La Stool Lands Secretariat will facilitate the payment of Ground Rent and other payments as the processing of documents through its database will automatically show addresses of leasees, amounts paid and due dates of future payments.

Teams of young people will be employed to man the IT System, dispatch notices and the entire value chain to be created while an arbitration panel will be commissioned to settle anticipated disagreements.

La hosts most of the prime State Lands and Bungalows that have been the subject of Looting being vigorously pursued by the Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) for which Ghanaians and Lamei are grateful.

The recent directive to the Lands Commission to halt all Land transactions is a step in the right direction on the back of a previous Presidential directive that no State institution should sell or lease any portion of Land assigned to it.

The promise of the President to set up the Presidential Commission of Enquiry into the Looted/Stolen State Lands and Bungalows and the Assurances of the Attorney-General designate, Dominic Ayine at his Vetting, is very refreshing.

There are two gaps, however, at the Legislature and Judiciary fronts especially as key officers of these branches have been complicit in the Looting of State Lands and Bungalows mostly belonging to the La Stool.

There is an urgent need for the Judicial Review of the Supreme Court’s erroneous interpretation of Article 20 (5)(6) of the Constitution of Ghana in the Nii Kpobi Tettey Tsuru III vs Attorney General judgement in which the Supreme Court opined that “Public Interest” means “Public Interest” thus opening the floodgates for the Land Looting.

The Legislature which is the representatives of the people can with a two-thirds vote of Parliamentarians ammend the Constitution to remove any ambiguity in Article 20 (5)(6) which is not an entrenched clause, to fully reflect the spirit of the Constitution in relation to the return of Lands to the Pre-acquisition Land Owners when the purpose of acquisition is changed.

The Constitutional Review may alternatively take up the task if the Judiciary and Legislture fail in this basic step which will be key in combating Corruption, Galamsey and Money Laundering while averting Land related Chieftaincy Crisis in many parts of Ghana.

The status of all State Acquired Lands and State Bungalows must be published so the Citizenry can keenly follow the operation to recover all stolen State Lands and Bungalows and blow the whistle on Real Estate Developers trying to build…

Ghanaians are resolved resolved be Citizens and not Spectators.

TOGETHER WE CAN.

#ResetGhana

By Prince-Derek Adjei