By Ralph Waldo Emerson
Asafoatse Akroboso III of the Larkpleh family of Prampram has accused military personnel stationed at the Shai Hills Military Camp of abandoning their official duties to act as land guards in a long-running property dispute at Afienya.
Speaking on behalf of the family, the Asafoatse alleged that soldiers have been preventing legitimate landowners from developing their properties and have carried out persistent attacks on residents and property owners in the area. He claimed these actions recently led to the death of a 70-year-old man.
“We have won judgment on this land, yet the military continues to allow itself to be used by encroachers to harass us and our clients,” Asafoatse Akroboso III said. “The matter has been reported to the Afienya police, but the harassment persists.”
The traditional leader issued an urgent appeal to President John Dramani Mahama and the Ministry of the Interior to intervene and halt what he described as illegal operations by the military personnel.
“We also have the men to battle the military over our land, but we do not want to take the law into our own hands,” he stated, adding that the Larkpleh family would not allow outsiders to forcibly claim properties legitimately acquired by their ancestors many years ago.
Asafoatse Akroboso III warned that if no action is taken within a short period, the family would be prepared to defend their rights, even if it meant confronting the military personnel directly.
