'Domiabra people are squatters not land owners' - Caretaker

The caretaker of Ngleshie Amanfro Asabaha in the Grater Accra Region, Robbert Nii Tettey, has stressed that Domiabra people in the Greater Accra Region do not have any land and that they are squatters where they live and therefore cannot call themselves landowners.

He was reacting to a publication in the Ghanaian Times Newspaper of 14th December, 2017, which referred to Domiabra people as land owners.

According to Robbert Nii Tettey, it is also not true that land guards are in anyway disturbing or terrorizing the people of Domiabra as the paper claimed.

In an interview, Nii Tettey noted that it is rather the Domiabra villagers who are terrorizing the real land owners of the place, pointing out that the Domiabra people usually bring land guards from various places including Joma, Weija, Ablekuma and other places known for landguards activities to harass the real land owners.

Nii Robbert Tettey explained that the Kasoa Police who were mentioned in the said publication to have been terrorizing Domiabra farmers together with landguards is not true, and that the police never attacked or team up with landguards to harass Domiabra farmers as wrongly stated in the story by one Nii Boye Sowah, a farmer, in the said publication.

Nii Tettey also added that, it is not true that, Nii Boi Sowah was kidnapped by one Lance Corporal Joshua of Dansoman, who was in the company of some landguards to do the kidnapping, as the publication wrongly claimed.

Nii Tettey asked, that if Domiabra people have taken portions of land at the place and the real owners report the matter to the Kasoa Police, and the police in turn asked the perpetrators to bring their documents for inspection, is that a crime by the Kasoa police for Domiabra people to say that they have teamed up with landguards to terrorize them?

Nii Tettey reiterated that Domiabra people do not have any land at the quarters where they are living as squatters, explaining that their land is in river Densu and that government promised to send them to Fante Mayera which has not yet been implemented.

He further explained that it was Danchira and Ngleshie Amanfro people who pleaded with government that Domiabra people should be resettled between Ngleshi Amanfro and Danchira border (boundary), with documents available to prove that they are indeed settlers and not owners of the place.

Nii Tettey pointed out that because it is Domiabra people who rather are fond of terrorizing the innocent land owners on the latter’s own lands he is calling on government to come to the aid of the land owners by providing them with adequate security to develop their own lands in peace.

Nii Tettey stressed that, “if you go for someone’s land and the police invite you to come and explain with documents, it is not a crime.”

He noted that government took the lands in question with the agreement that it will compensated Domiabra and Ngleshie Amanfro, but up till date no payment has been made by the government, to the two towns adding that they are fed up with Domiabra people so they should now be sent to Fante Mayera as early as possible as planned by government, so that the land owners will have their peace.

Nii Tettey averred that nowadays, anybody at all wakes up to claim ownership of any land.

He said even in some cases like that of Domiabra, no documents were left for them by their great grandfathers and fathers to prove that the land in question is for them, so how can the new generation under force pretences would now claim the lands in question as their own property. He emphasized that, “this is fraud.”

He therefore stressed that Domiabra people have two options; either they chase their land in Densu River or fall on government as early as possible to be sent to Fante Mayera as refugees to settle there for peace to prevail.

Meanwhile, Nii Tettey reiterated that, they are still waiting on government for their promised compensation which should be given to Ngleshie Amanfro and Danchira people.

The caretaker said that the two towns have finally decided that government should send Domiabra people to Fante Mayera as promised, to stop the way and manner they are terrorizing the land owners and their agents in the town.