…unhappy DCE wants a stop.
There is a fast ballooning protruding anger in Bugri, a farming community in the Tempane district of the Upper East Region over how an over 50-year-old dam that serve the irrigation need of the people is said to be dying out as politicians and royals put up private buildings on its banks.
Said to be one of the projects of Ghana’s first president, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the dam is famous for its irrigation activities.
Several local-hand-picked committee members in the past, who saw the welfare of the dam, have mounted spirited protection of the dam against encroachers.
Known for onion cultivation, the people of Bugri, made good use of the dam for dry season farming activities, especially dry season onion farming. The dam earned the Bugri community its enviable clique that “Bugri is onion and onion is Bugri”.
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Sadly, the once famous dam in the region is gasping to survive. Powerful encroachers are eating up the dam with huge private buildings loitered on its protective reserve.
Interestingly, the encroachers who are busily and speedy erecting private buildings on the reserve are bloody relations of the chief of the area, Naba Abdulai.
The tree-lined reserve that serve as a vegetative cover protecting the famous dam, now have private properties of some local untouchable New Patriotic Party boys. The encroachers are said to be under the protections of the heavy hands of the chief, who are per relations, his sons.
Issah Akolgo, a disheartened member of the governing New Patriotic Party and a younger brother of the Tempane constituency first vice chairman, owns the latest of the numerous structures on the reserve.
He is one of the darling boys of the chief, as several complaints filed by unhappy farmers in the area wanting the chief to order a stop of the buildings, yielded no result.
District chief executive for Tempane, Issaka Anabida, told the press that the Tempane district Assembly has formed a team to engage the chiefs, Assembly members and the people of the area over the matter. “We have formed a team to engage the chiefs and people of the area. We are of the view that those who have already put up buildings, we can’t just go and demolish the buildings, we need to engage the people first. Is not the best”. He outlined that the team will sensitised the people so that no one goes there to put up any structure again.
The District Chief Executive, who appeared unhappy with the development is asking for cooperation from the locals so as to prevent any future encroachment.
The dam risk gasping for a commodity it used to have in abundance and shared same to onion farmers for irrigation, water.
A video in the custody of this outlet showed how the famous dam is currently wobbling with powerful encroachers.
Some residents who expressed their anger over the development disclosed, that if measures are not employed to demolish the buildings, the dam will soon go thirsty.
The dam, said be sitting within the arm-reach of Naba Abdulai enjoyed protection over the years, but it is currently being encroached by his bloody relations. Naba Abdulai’s successor, this portal can report, resisted when the current encroachers attempted invading the land.
When Some disgruntled members of the community approached Naba Abdulai in the past and appealed for his assistance to help stop the encroachers, who are by relations, his sons, he turned the complainants down.
The local forestry guard in-charge of the area was threatened by the encroachers when he attempted to approached them.
The forestry Amendment act, 2002 (Act 264) makes it an offence to fell or subject forest resources to any manufacturing process without a written consent of a competent forestry authority.
Naba Abdulai verbally assaults reporters over ‘missing’ cash publication:
After verbally assaulting reporters of Upper East based Word Fm in a telephone interview over how some donated cash meant for victims of a recent military brutality in the area went into private use, it has now been revealed that Naba Abdulai shared part of the donated cash with his sub chiefs.
Media reports filed postulates that Naba Abdulai shared a component of the donated cash with some of his sub chiefs who were in his palace to welcome the donors. Investigations revealed that the interim Committee did not receive the exact amount quoted by one of the donors. It was later revealed that the unaccounted for amount was shared among the chief and his sub chiefs. This action was unilaterally taken by the chief without any consultation with the interim Committee assembled to oversee the disbursement of the donations to the victims.
A wired anger is said to be hiking in the area relative to the development.It is understood that the manner in which the chief and his elders shared part of the donations and coined it as “transport money” is said to be accumulating some anger among the youth in the area.
After philanthropists, politicians and organisations pieced cash donations towards the upkeep of injured victims following a dawn military invasion of the area, reports were rift that partof the money went into private use by the chief and his sub chiefs.
Naba Abdulai got angered, verbally punched a reporter with Upper East based Word FM and questioned if he is a native of the area and subsequently hanged up the call. “I will not listen to you. You can’t talk to me and you can never talk to me. Are you a native of Bugri?”.
Hours after the publication, one of his sons, named Mahami went cursing, insulting and threatened to deal with persons behind the publication.
In droves, some persons, said to be bloody related to the chief were said to be wearing frowned faces over the publication.
This outlet can report that NabaAbdulai declared his intention to invoke some gods of the area against persons he deemed as his detractors following the said publication.
More soon!
