A section of the residents
Residents of Commandos at Adentan in the Greater Accra Region on Tuesday staged a protest against the Director of the Animal Research Institute, Prof E.K Edu for his decision to build a wall to secure the state facility.
They argued that about 500 houses would be affected in the exercise.
Abubakar Sadique Yussif, Secretary of the Animal Research Residents Association, told DAILY GUIDE that an Accra Court in 2014 placed an injunction restraining the Institute from taking any action until the final determination of the case.
According to him, they were surprised last week when a team of armed policemen stormed the area in a bid to supervise the construction of the wall.
“We have tolerated this for far too long and we will not allow our properties which we acquired legally through hard-earned income to be swept away overnight.”
Giving the background to the acquisition of property in the area, Philip Yao Kumahor, a resident, who claims to have lived in the area for more than 30 years, said that the sale of land to the residents took place at the time government released undeveloped state lands to the original owners.
The timely intervention of Chief Inspector Gabriel Hanyabui, Housing Down Police Station, who was on a monitoring duty, prevented a confrontation between the youth, who burnt tyres and the director over project.
Chief Inspector Hanyabui, in a closed door meeting with Dauda Ali, Zongo Chief and representatives of the residents, called for calm.
He explained that the issue, which is pending before the police, would be handled effectively to restore calm to the area.
Later, Alhaji Issah Ahmed, a resident of the area, told DAILY GUIDE that residents had agreed in an earlier communication that the fencing of the Animal Research Institute lands would be carried out in a manner that would not affect their properties.
According to him, residents were asked not to develop properties beyond a certain limit.
By Solomon Ofori