GCAA, government meeting over encroached lands ends inconclusively

Another strike is looming at the Kotoka International Airport as a meeting between aggrieved staff and the Chief of Staff Julius Debrah ended inconclusively.

The workers halted a strike last Saturday over encroachment on lands belonging to the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) following the chief of staff’s intervention.

A crunch meeting was held Monday to resolve the impasse but the workers say they are not satisfied with the proposals being offered by the government. The workers want the rights to the 640 acres of land at that area reverted to the GCAA.

“We have told them that we need the 640 acres for immediate, medium and long term project. We were offered 40 acres and we think that is also woefully inadequate,” spokesperson of the aggrieved airport staff William Amoako told Starr Business.

The workers are demanding 320 acres for the installment of an HF facility worth over 600,000 Euros. They are also demanding the rights to the 640 acres to be reverted to the GCAA.

“… As a matter of principle we thought that the land should be vested in the GCAA, so the half will actually be for GCAA but the whole land will be in GCAA’s name,” Amoako noted.

Rumors are rife that the lands in contention have been sold out to some politicians and estate developers, making it difficult for government to give them back to the GCAA.

According to the staff, they will be forced to resume their suspended strike if they do not hear anything positive from government soon.

“The action that has been suspended, if there is a reason to resume it, we will do it as early as possible. There is always the possibility of a strike because it was only suspended, it was not cancelled outright,” Mr. Amoako added.