Nigeria paid for Osu land but didn’t process documents – Foreign Minister

Ghana’s foremost international diplomat to-be, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey has explained the brouhaha behind the clash that ensued between the Nigerian government and the custodians of the Osu lands.

Giving the explanation during her vetting at the Appointments Committee, she stated that Nigeria was allocated the said land by the late former president Jerry John Rawlings.

“It was an arrangement that was agreed upon between President Rawlings and I believe President Obasanjo”, she said.

Responding to the question from Asawase MP, Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka, she said, Nigeria paid for the allocated land.

However, they failed to process a lease and land title for the land.

Due to this, that whole area where the land was allocated is owned by the Osu Stool and as a vested land, it is managed by the Lands Commission for the Osu Stool. This land in question had part of it in the Independence Avenue while part of it is behind.

Because the land was not processed by Nigeria, there was no record for it in the books of the Osu Stool as is managed by the Lands Commission, although they had put up a fence wall around the land.

Due to this the Osu Stool also gave out the land and the buyers processed the land at the Lands Commission.

"Interestingly, while they were putting up the wall and a building, they did not seek for permit for it, and so, at the Korle Klotey Municapal Assembly, there was no record of any activity that had taken place on the land, and because it has also been sold to another person, this new buyer came to destroy the way and also demolish the building, thinking that his land has been encroached upon. That is how the brouhaha started".

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs then intervened to find out why what brought about the tussle. “It was then that we found out that they (Nigeria) had only the receipt of their purchase but there was no record anywhere. However, because of the strong relations that exist between our two countries and the fact that whatever it is, it is a diplomatic enclave”, she said.

She said, it was now the issue of the Vienna Convention, the inviolability of diplomatic residence and so in finding a solution to the problem, they were encouraged to perfect the title to the land.

“And because of the importance we attach to the relations, we (Government of Ghana) decided that we would construct the building to the level it was before the demolition”, She added.