Parliamentary C’ttee, police clash in Achimota Forest
There was an altercation between members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Lands, Forestry and Mines and a team of policemen from the Accra region last Tuesday, when the MPs went to the Achimota Forest to investigate reports of encroachment on the reserve.
Advertisement
There had been reports of a war of words between the forest guards and personnel from the Accra region of the Ghana Police Service on Monday over a portion of the forest land which was under dispute and the committee had gone there on a fact- finding mission, but about thirty minutes after they had arrived, a team of policemen, led by Corporal D. Agbehiadzi, arrived at the scene in a Police Nissan Pickup truck with registration number GP 3783, questioning the motives of the MPs and suggesting that they had no right to be there.
They claimed that they were acting under the instructions of their “boss” who had ordered them to prevent any visit to the land in dispute, and sought to suggest that the MPs had no business being there.
A heated argument ensued, with the MPs accusing the policemen of disrespect and the police saying they were simply acting on orders.
The Chairman of the committee, Alhaji Amadu Seidu, told the policemen that even the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Minister of Interior, whom the police hierarchy answered to, were answerable to Parliament and that no institution in the country, could prevent Parliament from carrying out its legitimate business.
Alhaji Seidu said he would report the conduct of Cpl Agbehiadzi and his men to the IGP and the Ministry of the Interior.
Briefing
When the MPs were departing the after completing their fact finding, the police team was still there.
Briefing members of the committee earlier, the Chief Executive of the Forestry Commission (FC), Mr Samuel Afari-Dartey, said it was the duty of all Ghanaians to protect the forest reserve.
He said initially the forest covered 495 hectares but due to encroachment, only 360 hectares remained.
He added that the FC had vowed to protect what remained of the forest and expressed surprise that the police, which was another state institution, instead of assisting the FC to protect the reserve, was rather aiding a private developer to illegally take part of it.
Background
There was a confrontation between officials of the FC and some policemen at the Achimota Forest over the right of the commission to construct a fence wall to protect the forest.
The FC had begun the construction of the fence wall last Friday to prevent further encroachment on the reserve by an estate developer.
However, the police arrived at the site, claiming they were acting on the orders of the Accra Regional Police Command to stop the project.
As of 2.15 p.m. last Monday when officials of the FC led a team of journalists to the site, the policemen still insisted that the place was a ‘no go’ area for even officials of the FC.
But the Commercial Development Manager of the FC, Rev. David Kpelle, maintained that there was no need for the FC to obtain permission from the Accra Regional Police Commander in order to show reporters the boundaries of the forest.