9 Chiefs Bare Teeth @ Gov�t

Nine Chiefs in the Bui Catchment area of the Northern and Brong Ahafo regions are demanding the immediate payment of their compensation for stool lands covering a total of 434,589.48 acres acquired under the Executive Instrument (EI70) for the construction of the Bui Dam.

According to them, they are losing trust in the government over what they describe as “long delay” in the payment of their resettlement package.

Their frustration is borne out of the reluctance of the government to cede lands that do not form part of the compulsory acquisition that have been seized and are being exploited by illegal miners at the expense of the land owners.

Expressing their sentiments to the DAILY HERITAGE in an interview, lawyer for the chiefs, John Kwame Koduah asked for the speedy adjudication of their matter at the courts urging the “Lands Commission to be serious with them.”

When the parties appeared in court last Tuesday, the solicitor/secretary of the Lands Commission, Poku Buah, told the Fast Track High Court presided over by Justice Ofori Atta, that the matter could not be heard since a team has only returned from the area in a dispute with Cote d’Ivoire and is yet to submit its report to the Attorney General’s office for advice.

In consultation with counsel for the petitioners, Mr Koduah agreed that the matter be adjourned to June 15, by which time the report from the team of surveyors would have been ready, but the judge asked them to come on June 17, to which they both agreed.

Judge’s remarks

Justice Ofori Atta, after hearing the plea of the Solicitor/Secretary of the lands Commission, Mr. Buah, said the adjournment will enable the court to take further directions from the Attorney General’s department on the matter.

Survey report

Mr. Buah, in an interaction with the paper, hinted that they will consider an out of court settlement with the petitioners, but was quick to assert that the priority is to receive the official report of the team of surveyors tasked to deal with the boundary dispute between government and their counterparts from Cote d’Ivoire.

He said the report of the team dispatched to the area will be ready by Thursday and it will be given to the petitioners’ counsel, Mr Koduah to enhance the successful adjudication of the matter when the parties appear in court on June 17.

No compensation since 2008

The project coordinator of A.K. Baffoe & Co which conducted the valuation for the stool owners, Kwasi Oduro-Dwamena, told the paper that, after putting a team to value the said land acquired for the Bui Dam, no compensation has been paid to them.

According to him, a total of 434,589.48 acres of land (175,867.61 hectares) were valued at hundreds of millions of cedis for nine stools in the acquisition made. The total acquisition under the EI70, he said was 455,712,000 acres representing 184,501.34 hectares.

They include; Banda, North Mo (Teselima, Carpenter Jugboi), Gonja (Bole), Sesewe Nkwanta, Branam, Dokokyina, Lorga Community (Jama), Bia (Jama), South Mo (New Longoro), Kyingakrom and Ayorja.