By Patrick Biddah
A group of over 100 ex-military men have hit the street to demand an immediate explanation for the suspected sale of the official residences of Ghana’s Chief of Defence Staff and the Chief of Army Staff.
The ex-servicemen, who said they had had enough of the dissipation of state lands, mobilised and went to stop workers developing the 15-acre land located on number 3 Borstal Avenue, which is the land occupying the residences of both the CDS and the Chief of Army Staff.
Some of their placards read, “Pack Out Of Here; It Is A Military Property,” and “The Thieves Should Keep Off.”
The action of the ex-servicemen, in no time, attracted a military officer, who showed up with the name tag- Colonel Sabah, who tried to explain that the land in question has not been sold, but rather an arrangement to redevelop it to provide more units for the military and a permanent residence for the CDS.
His explanation seems to have infuriated the ex-servicemen, who vehemently advised him not to promote such state capture in the name of Public-Private Partnerships.
In their opposition, the ex-servicemen had a heated confrontation with the Colonel, who had to leave.
Eventually, the ex-seriousmen sacked all the workers and got the gate locked.
Matters, however, got deadly when some fully armed military men stormed the construction site and openly brandished AK-47 assault rifles, threatening to shoot the ex-servicemen.
In the process, one ex-serviceman disabled the weapon of the soldier, who threatened to open fire, and another pointed a gun at the head of the uniformed soldier.
The convener for the ex-servicemen, Capt( Rtd) Fidelis Adams, who spoke with The Herald, indicated that the land under construction was known to be for the development of a medical school to support the 37miltary hospital. Although it houses the official residence of the CDS, the structures being put up do not suggest the same.
For him, the current development has been shrouded in secrecy, and an explanation was needed to safeguard the armed forces’ property.
For example, he said there were no writings on the walls of the land to show that there was any development going on there.
“Before the explanation comes, there was the need to protect military lands and property at all times, whether in active service or on retirement,” he stressed.
