Petition to the President to Halt Encroachment Activities on Achimota School Land

FOR IMMDEIATE RELEASE

PETITION TO PRESIDENT MAHAMA AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS TO HALT THE ENCROACHMENT OF ACHIMOTA SCHOOL LAND

ACCRA, 24/11/2015 – The petition process is a time-honoured approach to mobilising support for change to social issues that affect all and enables campaigners to highlight such issues to those in authority. In Ghana, our forefathers -- Abraham, Aggrey, Attoh Ahuma, Brew, Brown, Cheetham, Mensah Sarbah, Sey, traditional leaders, and others -- used the petition process to register their concerns about British land legislation in the late 1800s. Today we, the Achimota School Land Petition Group comprising alumni located in Ghana and abroad, are using the petition process to highlight our concerns about the loss of Achimota School land for future generations. Our primary motivation for this action stems from our recognition of the following:

- Achimota School land is owned wholly by the state on behalf of all the people of Ghana

- Achimota School is a significant national asset from which many of Ghana’s educational institutions and achievements have been nurtured

- It is a potential World Heritage site that deserves the twin investments of rigorous preservation and sustained continual improvement for the benefit also of future generations of Ghanaians

- Ghana’s national prosperity is inextricably linked to the quality of education that it offers to its youth.

Fellow Ghanaians, many of you would no doubt be aware that Achimota School has been battling with encroachment of its land by private developers, individuals, business owners, and, more recently, by some of the displaced residents of Old Fadama. A significant portion of the school’s land has been taken over by encroachment activity from private developers and others. These private developers and other encroachers have, and continue to construct residential and other buildings on land in the Achimota Folly, Achimota School farm, portions of Achimota land adjoining GIMPA, and on lands that are in close proximity to students’ boarding accommodation on the western compound of the school. As recently as 24 July 2015, the Ghanaian Times reported that a developer had ordered teachers occupying two of the school’s staff bungalows to vacate the buildings to enable their demolition and replacement by a private property. Clearly such encroachment and outright theft, especially by the more well to do in our country, undermines our nation’s capacity to expand educational opportunity for ordinary Ghanaians and to enhance the quality of teaching and learning for future generations. Thus, the very prosperity of the Republic of Ghana, our beloved homeland, is permanently jeopardised.

Additionally, aside of the dire consequences on the environment from such indiscriminate encroachment activity, there is the very real threat to the safety of students and other members of the school community that should be of serious concern to all Ghanaians whether as parents or simply as people who value the wellbeing of our youth. In the last few months, four murder cases, countless thefts and significant vandalisation of school property have been recorded.

In 2010, when the encroachment activity caused damage to the school’s sanitation system and posed a major threat to the health of students and staff, we were compelled to present a petition to the late President John Evans Atta Mills. Unfortunately, the encroachment situation has worsened progressively since then and has seen an escalation in recent times which if not immediately and decisively checked will put matters completely out of hand. It is not hard to see that, if the situation remains unchecked, the resulting chaos will aggravate further the already tremendous risks to life, property and the overall quality of teaching and learning that now characterise the daily experience of students and staff. Unable to sit idly by and watch while the situation grows from bad to worse, the Achimota School Land Petition Group, has found it necessary to call on alumni of Achimota School, concerned Ghanaians, and friends of education in Ghana, to sign a petition that sends a clear message to the Government of Ghana that it must act now to halt the ongoing encroachment, illegal sale and outright theft of Achimota School land by private individuals, businesses, and developers. Fortunately, over 1500 people have signed the petition which we invite you to view at: https://www.change.org/p/petition-halt-the-illegal-sale-and-encroachment-of-achimota-school-land

In general, our petition addressed to His Excellence President Mr. John D Mahama and to other officials of our nation:

? expresses our concern about the ongoing encroachment, illegal sale and theft of Achimota School land; and

? requests the president’s immediate intervention to halt this rampant destruction of a globally recognised national asset that continues to be of importance to Ghana as an icon of quality education, a national heritage, and a national resource for the education of current and future generations of young Ghanaians.

Specifically, the petition requests that the President, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, the Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission, the Municipal Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, and the Achimota School Board jointly or severally:

1. Place a moratorium on all land sales and illegal construction activity on Achimota School land;

2. Secure and clearly demarcate such land;

3. Investigate all sales and encroachment activity on said land;

4. Prosecute all persons and entities engaging in illegal sale and acquisition of Achimota School land;

5. Stop the issuance of permits and registration of such land; and

6. Provide full disclosure of all transactions relating to the acquisition of Achimota School land.

Additionally, we are also notifying various other government officials of this petition. These include the Speaker of Parliament, the Minister of Education, and the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service.

Given the gravity of the situation and the magnitude of the loss that our nation stands to suffer, it is our expectation that this time the Government of Ghana will take seriously our petition for the government to act immediately to halt all encroachment activities on Achimota School land once and for all, and restore normalcy to the Achimota School campus.

To learn more about this issue, please visit: http://saveachimotaland.blogspot.com/

Media Contacts:

Akora Daniel Allan, Ghana: notallan@yahoo.com [+233-20-9380794]

Akora Felix Adjei-Bisa, Ghana: adjeibisa@yahoo.com [+233-24-4781134]

Akora Kwame Clottey, United Kingdom: petitionachimotaland@gmail.com

Akora Neil Armstrong-Mortagbe, Ghana: narmstrongmort@gmail.com [+233-24-6156735]

Akora Dr. Sodzi Sodzi-Tettey, Ghana: sodzi_tettey@hotmail.com [+233-20-6301109]