Over 15,000 artisans at Suame Magazine industrial hub in Zone 13 of the Ashanti regional capital, are facing eviction following a court order granted to a private developer for estate projects.
The portion of Zone 13 in the industrial hub has been purchased by a private developer with the assistance of the Lands Commission, which has served them an eviction notice.
According to the artisans, the land is covered by an Executive Instrument (E.I. 36); therefore, if they are to be evicted, that instrument should be amended in Parliament.
They say they are heading towards a crisis because their livelihoods would be affected by the eviction.
The artisans, who have been occupying the land since 1989, say they have nowhere to go after the eviction.
Eric Arhin, the chairman of Zone 13, said the situation is a big blow to them if it is not changed. He called on the government and the Asantehene to intervene on their behalf.
Some artisans who spoke to our news team threatened to vote against the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the December elections if the government fails to act on their behalf.
“We have been working on this government land for many years. Under the current NPP regime, the land has been sold to private individuals with the support of the Lands Commission. What is going on in this country under the NPP regime? Why are they selling every government property? About 15,000 people will be affected by the eviction; at least 95% of the men voted for the NPP. We shall see what will happen in the next election. Voting against the NPP will be a spontaneous assignment in Suame Magazine,” he threatened.
The protesters also accused the Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei-Mensah, of disappointing them after contacting his office to resolve the issue, which involves evicting about 15,000 artisans in the area.
Kwabena Nsenkyire, a spare parts dealer and leading member of the NPP, visited the area to calm things down and assured them of the Vice-President’s intervention.
“I’m equally a victim of the unfortunate eviction notice not served to us. But because the case is in court, we have to respect the court. The Vice-President will intervene to get this issue resolved for peace to resume in zone 13. Let’s not do anything that will destabilize peace in Magazine,” he assured.
Watch the interview below:
Source: GNA
