The Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs (GARHC) has called on the government to take immediate steps to halt the destruction of the historical Dodowa Forest by real estate developers.

The acting President of the GARHC, Prof. Nii Oboade Notse Odaifio Welentsi III, who made the call, stressed the need for a full-scale investigation into the faceless encroachers. He added that the Dodowa Forest was an important biodiversity resource of historical significance, and must not be pillaged by "unscrupulous elements".

"The Ga-Dangme has already contributed enough land to the development of this country and cannot lose our historical forest to self-seeking elements," he stressed.

Prof. Nii Welentsi made the call during an emergency meeting between the GARHC and the Greater Accra Regional Security Council (REGSEC) at the Guggisberg Memorial Hall in Dodowa.

Crunch meeting

Present at the meeting were the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Daniel Nii Kwartei Titus-Glover; a member of the Council of State, Stanley Nii Adjiri-Blankson; the Ga Mantse, Nii Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, and other representatives from the 13 traditional councils in the Greater Accra Region.

It was also attended by all the metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives in the Greater Accra Region and the different outfits under the Greater Accra REGSEC, including the Ghana Armed Forces, the Ghana Police Service, the Ghana Immigration Service, National Investigations Bureau and other security agencies.

The meeting discussed pertinent issues ranging from the celebration of Homowo and other festivals, chieftaincy disputes, security issues and the depletion of the Dodowa Forest by developers.

Peace and unity

Touching on issues of peace and security, Prof. Nii Welentsi urged people of Ga-Dangme descent to use the upcoming Homowo Festival to iron out chieftaincy and other disputes among them in the interest of development.

He asked persons “illegitimately parading themselves” as chiefs to desist from such acts in order not to derail the peace of the region and the country at large. The acting GARHC President said despite the diversity in opinions, it was important for all persons of Ga-Dangme origin to be united for their collective good.

In response to the call by the GARHC, the Greater Accra Regional Minister said the Dodowa Forest would be declared a security zone and prompt action taken to halt all development activities in the area.

He called for support from all stakeholders to weed out encroachers from the Dodowa Forest. “I have personally gone to see the destruction of the Dodowa Forest, and it is sad that it has been massively impacted by development activities,” the Regional Minister said. 

"I want to assure you that together with REGSEC, we will ensure that nobody enters that forest. The minister stressed that under his watch, all lands in the region would be protected from encroachers.

He urged all chiefs in the region to support the clean-up campaign started by the Ga Mantse and the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council to rid the city of filth. 

Donation

In a related development, the Regional Minister presented a bus to the GARHC to support their movement. He explained that the presentation of the bus was in fulfilment of a promise the Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, made to the House recently.