Rush for land compromises flight safety in Takoradi
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The metropolitan assembly is re-allocating parts of the lands reserved for future road expansion projects and other social infrastructure for the next 50 years for development.
The road from Paa Grant Roundabout to Nkrumah Roundabout has large tracts of land on both sides reserved for road expansion and these have been allocated to companies for development. The land from the Shippers Roundabout to the Nkrumah Roundabout has also been allocated to some people who have put up permanent structures such as offices and hotels.
The Lands Commission complains that occupants of such lands have disregarded the purpose for which the lands were reserved.
Officials of the commission say the Tarkwa and Accra stations were reserved for use as lorry parks and not for the development of permanent structures but now storey buildings have sprung up there, while other structures are being developed fast on the road linking the Shippers Roundabout where there are plans to construct a mall, which is in the path of aircraft in Takoradi.
The Ghana Air Force is also warning developers along its air space to stop further development since their activities compromise the safety of aircraft. An official of the Ghana Air Force has said that no construction activities are permitted about three kilometres from the centre line and 500 metres on the left and right sides of the centre line.
However, a Ghanaian consortium has acquired the lease for the construction of a shopping mall in Takoradi, estimated at about $90 million, and is currently struggling to convince the Air Force to allow it to go ahead with the project. The investor is also asking hundreds of mechanics who are currently occupying the space to relocate.
When contacted, an official of the Ghana Air Force said the proposed site for the mall covered the area bordering the Jubilee Park on the eastern side of the Air Force Base.
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The Public Affairs Officer of the Garrison, Squadron Leader Francesca Ahorlu, explained that the current occupants did not pose any threat to flight safety but the construction of the five and six-storey facilities on both sides of the land was not safe. There is a storey building on the proposed site, which lies within the lateral limits of the runway centre line.
She said aircraft used the right-hand circuit pattern of the Takoradi Airport for training or circling before landing during bad weather, and, therefore, the putting up of any structure in the area will compromise the safety of the airport.
“That aside, the right-hand circuit is to the west of the runway and extends laterally from the runway center line to the west side of the runway,” she said.
Squadron Leader Ahorlu explained that no obstructions such as mast or tall buildings are allowed in the area since in very bad weather, aircraft had to fly as low, between 500 and 700 feet for emergency landing.
In a document made available to the Daily Graphic, the Air Force indicated that the Takoradi Airport was home to the No. 1 Squadron, a premier training squadron for the Ghana Air Force and a lot of basic and conversion training is done there by new pilots.
When contacted, an official of the Western Development Consortium, Mr Peter Ogboshi, said they had submitted their first proposal to the Ghana Air Force.
The plan for the development of the land has been submitted to the metropolitan assembly but the consortium is also facing stiff resistance from artisans who are already occupying the land and have vowed not to move.
Mr Ogboshi said the consortium acquired the land in question legally and the mall had to be constructed. In other areas, the Regional Lands Commission has marked some buildings which have been constructed without permit from the commission for demolishing.
According to the Regional Land Administration Officer, Mr Christopher Atangah, the challenge the commission currently faced was that people were not obeying the rules. For instance, he said, some people obtained permits for land in Accra and Tarkwa stations in Takoradi to be developed into a lorry park only for them to put up permanent structures, ignoring the purpose for which the land was leased to them.
By Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu/Daily Graphic/Ghana