Hon. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, MP for La Dadekotopon Constituency
The Member of Parliament for La Dadekotopon Constituency, Hon. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah has urged government agencies to engage with the Ghana Armed Forces and La residents to stop clashes between the two factions.
A group of residents of La also known as Coalition of La Associations (COLA) and the military have had several clashes over a piece of land belonging to the La Stool which they believe the military is encroaching on.
However, on Thursday, April 15, 2021, things took a different turn when the media covering the protest and members of the COLA were assaulted by the army.
The soldiers unleashed clubs, horsewhips on the civilian's whilst others were battered with guns.
But speaking on the issue on Friday, Hon. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah condemned the physical assaults on both the media and the protestors.
"Some of the media men and women were assaulted and I don't think this orders well for us as a nation," the lawmaker said.
She added, "as Member of Parliament for Dadekotopon, I condemn this act and I am calling on the Minister of Defense and Minister of Lands and the state as a whole to come together for an amicable solution."
According to the MP, the Ministry of Defense, as well as the Ministry of Lands, should dialogue with both the military and COLA to find an amicable solution since the two factions have lived harmoniously over the years.
Hon. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah said, "The people of La are peaceful citizens and when we seat down and dialogue there's going to be peace because we have lived with them for all these years.
"Whatever the negotiations are, the government should come clear on it to make sure we have peace within our walls."
Some of the people who were injured were admitted to the hospital but there were no fatalities.
