Police officers at the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT), Unit have allegedly turned into landguards, guarding a piece of land day-and-night to allow one faction contending for its ownership to illegally develop the land at East Legon, in the Greater Accra Region.
Sources say the SWAT Commander, Theophilus Hlomenu, has refused to withdraw the services of police officers acting as landguards on the said land because he has order from above (supposedly from the police headquarters) to keep the men there.
One of the contenders, Dr. Anko Ankrah, who is one of the allodia owners of the lands at Tesa in East Legon told this reporter he would do all he can to ensure that his property does not end up in the hands of strangers.
He noted that one of the care takers on the land had sold it to one Ms. Daphine Oppong.
Dr. Anko Ankrah of the Numo Nmashie Family of Teshie has sought to clarify issues at the East Legon Police Station with the other party but it ended in a stalemate even though the East Legon police asserted that the allodia owners were the Numo Nmashie family.
The East Legon police thereafter advised that parties sought further clarification through the courts if they were not satisfied.
However, while the supposed original owners of the land sought r an order of possession in court, Ms Daphine made U-turn to seek police assistance to perpetuate her illegality.
When the East Legon police were contacted, a source said the matter has moved from their domain to a higher authority and SWAT was now in control.
The SWAT Commander when contacted explained that he was only carrying orders from above, indicating the said order was from the operations directorate of the police headquarters.
Both the police and Ms Daphine Oppong have refused to accept the court order, to vacate the land by playing hanky-panky games with the bailiff.
The police at SWAT, even after being notified of the court decision still played their role as land guard for Ms Oppong to develop the land.
So far, according to Dr. Anko Ankrah, the original buyer of the land, to whom he sold the piece of land to has spent over a billion cedi to make the land habitable yet the police who have no place on their family matters want to determine who owned the land. "Is that the mandate of the police, what is their interest?" He asked rhetorically.
Further, a 2008 Supreme Court judgment reaffirmed a 1982 Appeals Court judgement which clearly ruled that the Numo Nmashie family of Teshie in the Greater Accra Region were owners of all lands "comprised in some 72 villages including: Tesa, Otele and Adjiringano, East Legon.
The said ruling has since not been challenged by the Supreme Court of the land.
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