Akufo-Addo should speak on the Achimota forest saga if he has no share of the land -Awutu Senya East NDC Chairman

Awutu Senya East constituency chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Stephen Ofosu Agyare has expressed worry over the total silence of President Akufo Addo on the alleged sale of the Achimota Forest which serves as a property for the country.

He says that the country needs an independent body to legally probe the alleged acquisition of state lands and deal lawfully with the perpetrators.

He further stresses that the governing New Patriotic Party(NPP) handling of the matter is highly political, and, as such, the land grabbers in the NPP government ought to stay away from the Achimota Forest land because come 2025 when power changes hands the NDC will succinctly probe the issue and deal with those land looters according to the laws of our country.

His statements have come on the backdrop of the Late Forestry Commission CEO, Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, popularly known as Sir John, who has also been embroiled in the controversy, after suggesting his supposed WILL suggests that he owns acres of land in the Achimota Forest reserve and on some Ramasar site coupled with other state assets.

Mr. Ofosu Agyare is calling on the president to break his silence on the issue to clear the air for the masses, adding that his continuous sis silence speaks volumes and is inimical to the practice of democracy in the country.

According to him, he wondered if the resident, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo had read meanings into that fat prom before the ade to Ghanaians before the 2016-2020 campaigns saying, "I will protect,ct the public purse, lives, and properties for the country Ghana" but, yet the opposite has been obvioreinsce taking over the reins of power.

"It has now come to notice that some friends and families of the New Patriotic   Party have shared portions of the Achimota
forest against the background that the land was meant for a forest reserve.

The Chairman is therefore appealing to the President to, as a matter of urgency break his long silence over the matter for the appropriate quarters to address the issue before it blows a lot of dimensions in the grabbing of State Lands in the country.

Mr. Ofosu Agyare wants the President to clear the doubts in the minds of discerning Ghanaians that indeed, he (Akufo-Addo) is a listening President.

"The President's failure to do so will amount to confirming the allegations that he and his political capos within his government have shared state properties like the Achimota forest land among themselves." He adds that "I want you to speak Mr. President if indeed you are the one who promised to protect the lives and properties of Ghanians a few years ago" 

The Awutu Senya East Chairman was taken aback to also realize that the country's properties have been shared amongst the NPP top officials in government.

He says that during the Covid era, the president became known as "Fellow Ghanaians" as he began with, whenever he appeared on TV to speak to Ghanaians on some false information clothed with Covid. And that he should use the same modus operandi to clear the air to allay the fears of Ghanaians and the international community because Ghana is not a home for the Akyem cabals, but all.

He has urged the Traditional Council, Christian Council, and other opinion leaders to add their voices to the matter since it bothers the very future of the country.

"All that is going on in the country, other countries are watching and it is very disgraceful, therefore I am pleading with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo to speak out if indeed he is not aware of the Achimota forest situation", he urged.

The eminent Chairman has urged the good people of Awutu Senya East within Kasoa and its environs to have confidence in the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and give their unflinching support for the party by voting massively for both parliamentary and presidential candidates come 2024.

He has also admonished the executives and the party faithfuls to remain committed and devoted to the party because 2024 is a big win for the great NDC fraternity.

Story By Kwaku Donkoh.