Sempe Kingmakers Descend On AMA Boss

Elders of the Sempe Stool in the Greater Accra region have cautionedthe Accra Metropolitan Assembly and the Gbawe Kwartei Family over theintended demolition of properties within the Akokorfoto enclave of Dansoman, a suburb of Accra. The Sempe Kingmakers have also petitioned the Chief Justice, Georgina Wood, to intervene in the matter to prevent the AMA from carrying outthe wanton destruction of peoples� homes in the name of the judiciary. In a strongly worded statement issued to this paper over the weekend, Registrar to the Sempe Stool, Nii Lartey Anum Tetteh, said what is more painful is the fact that the properties involved are first class residential homes �and we invite all living in the city of Accra to verify this for themselves as demonstrated by the photographic evidence which we are today presenting�. According to him, the AMA intends to carry out the demolition exercise �notwithstanding the pendency of at least four cases involving the same subject matter� �It is worth repeating that there is also an order of injunction by the High Court on the same property which granted the injunction in favour of the plaintiffs/respondents deriving their interest from the defendant and the Gbawe stool from interfering with or in anyway dealing with lands to the West of Accra, which includes the land generally known as �Akokorfoto� or �Poultry Farm� or �Pig Farm� in Benjamin Adotei Allotey v Nii Adam Kwartei Quartey, unreported judgement of the High Court (Land Division) per Justice S.H, Ocran dated 10th June 2010�. Below is the full statement issued! PRESS STATEMENT BY CHIEFS AND PEOPLE OF SEMPE The Chiefs, Kingmakers and people of Sempe are compelled once again to communicate publicly on demolition proposed to be carried out at Akokorfoto Dansoman in relation to property belonging to the Sempe Stool but persistently and deliberately misdescribed by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and the Gbawe Kwartei family as constituting slum. It is worth emphasizing that there are at least three sets of litigation between the Gbawe Kwartei family and other entities as to the ownership of the Akokorfoto lands. The lands had belonged to the Sempe Stool from time immemorial, infact they were leased by Nii Tetteh Kpeshie in the early 1940�s until the 1990�s when the lease terminated. Whereupon the Gbawe Kwartei family upon fraudulent misrepresentation to the court succeeded in obtaining a judgement in their own favour notwithstanding the fact that the reversion in the lease was vested in the lessor or the Sempe Stool. This gave rise to the series of litigation before the courts of Akokorfoto lands. Whiles those cases were still pending the Gbawe Kwartei family which are a party to each of the cases went to another division of the High court and obtain an order of mandamus compelling the AMA to demolish the properties as comprising a series of slums. The said order of mandamus was obtained without involving any of the parties to the current series of litigation on the land and even grantees and occupants of Akokorfoto were never informed. The residents and occupants of Akokorfoto commenced two cases before the Human Rights Court division of the High Court. By a letter dated 30th May 2014, Yaw Twumasi Ankrah a legal officer of the AMA wrote to the Operations Unit of Ghana Police requesting that the demolishing be carried out. Infact by a further letter dated 23rd May, 2014, Francis Brakwah a registrar of the High court wrote without any prompting whatsoever quote �am compelled once again to write to remind you of the legal function imposed on you by the high court presently, there is no legal impediment on the way of the execution of the court�. This is not withstanding the pendency of at least four cases involving the same subject matter, which should have stayed the hand of the registrar. It is worth repeating that there is also an order of injunction by the high court on the same property which granted the injunction in favour of the plaintiffs/respondents deriving their interest from the defendant and the Gbawe stool from interfering with or in anyway dealing with lands to the West of Accra which includes the land generally known as �Akokorfoto� or �Poultry Farm� or �Pig Farm� in Benjamin Adotei Allotey v Nii Adam Kwartei Quartey, unreported judgement of the High Court (Land Division) per Justice S.H, Ocran dated 10th June 2010. A subsequent contempt application by the same Family was roundly defeated in the matter of Republic v. Benjamin Adotei Allotey, unreported judgement of the Fast Track Division of the High Court, Accra, per Justice S.K.A. Asiedu dated 5th day of April 2012.And an appeal against the ruling of the High court which they also lost in Benjamin Adotei Allotey and three others v.Nii Adam Kwartei, unreported judgement of the court of Appeal per Coram: A. Asare Korang J.A. (Presiding),S.E. Kanyoke J.A., Korbieh J.A. dated19th day of April 2012. Even more painful the properties concerned are of the first class residential nature and we invite all living in the city of Accra to verify this for themselves as demonstrated by the photographic evidence which we are today presenting. The properties at Akokorfoto are among the top two percent (2%) top class properties in the city of Accra, notwithstanding they are being portrayed as slum just to give a dog a bad name and hang it. We urge the people of Ghana to take notice of this day light denial of justice occurring just in the city of Accra. We urge the Chief Justice to intervene in this matter to prevent the AMA from carrying on wanton destruction in the name of the judiciary. We also emphasized that other residents of Akokorfoto has only this morning instituted a fresh action against the AMA and the Gbawe Kwatei family. And we would react again as the situation unfold. DATED THIS 11TH DAY OF JULY 2014 Nii Lartey Anum Tetteh Registrar The area being described by the AMA as a slum