News
Prayer Palace calls for Justice over land dispute with alleged Chinese developer
Prayer Palace International Church says it’s under siege and is calling on authorities to intervene in a land dispute involving an alleged Chinese developer at its Manet-Spintex property.
Speaking to the media during a press conference today at the church premises, Head Pastor Prophet Emmanuel Adjei explained the church bought about 4 acres of land from Samuel Kofi Diame in 2019.
A year later, the Numo Kofi Anum family of Tesa, Teshie, surfaced with a Supreme Court judgement claiming ownership.
“Per our investigations we realised that they are the rightful owners of the land. So we had to atone tenancy to them,” Prophet Adjei said. The church began paying atonement to the Numo Kofi Anum family and, he says, lived peacefully with them.
Trouble started two weeks ago when the church began development on the land. Land guards allegedly stormed the site and stopped work, claiming the church wasn’t the “bonafide” owner.
“We called the Numo Kofi Anum family, the owners of the land, and it turned out they had no knowledge of a Chinese national claiming ownership of the land,” the Prophet added.
The matter was reported to the Ghana Police Service and referred to the Property Fraud Unit for investigation. Both parties were told to stay off the land for one week. But Prayer Palace officials allege construction continued on the site during that period, despite police instructions.
Church leaders say enforcement has been weak and the situation has agitated over 2,500 congregants who contributed to buy the land. They are now urging authorities to fast-track investigations and protect the property.
“The church is worried, the church is agitated. They’ve contributed, they’ve bought land, they want to develop and a Chinese man without documentation, being supervised by Ghanaians, is invading a land that belongs to Ghanaians,” Prophet Adjei stated.
Prayer Palace is asking authorities to uphold the rule of law and ensure justice is served while ownership is verified.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The Ghana High Commission in Abuja, Nigeria, is appealing to the public to help trace the relatives or next of kin of Apia Solomon, a Ghanaian national believed to be from Osu, Accra.
According to a public announcement by the High Commission, Mr. Solomon, born on March 6, 1960, in Accra, died on July 5, 2021, from cardiopulmonary failure.
He worked as a temporary civilian staff member at the National Defence College in Nigeria. His remains are currently being kept at the Nigerian Air Force Hospital morgue in Abuja, pending burial arrangements.
The High Commission says efforts to locate his relatives have so far been unsuccessful and is urging anyone with information about his family, friends or next of kin to come forward.
Anyone with relevant information is encouraged to contact the Ghana High Commission in Abuja.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Security consultant Richard Kumadoe has blamed what he describes as flawed recruitment and incomplete background checks for some of the problems facing the Bureau of National Intelligence (BNI).
He has called on the leadership of the BNI to review the backgrounds of officers recruited during specific periods, particularly those who entered the agency under recent recruitment processes.
Speaking on the issue on TV3 yesterday, Mr Kumadoe alleged that some individuals were recruited into the intelligence agency without proper background checks and completed vetting.
“Certain categories of persons were dumped into the BNI, whose backgrounds were not checked, and whose vettings were not completed,” he stated.
He said some of the officers linked to the concerns appeared to have been recruited within the same period, making it necessary for the agency to examine the recruitment records and backgrounds of those who joined during that time.
Mr Kumadoe argued that the problems could be addressed by ensuring that recruitment procedures were properly followed and that all applicants underwent the required checks before being employed.
According to him, when the selection process is flawed, it can lead to problems within the institution.
He blamed the politicisation of security institutions, arguing that appointing people without the necessary intelligence experience and allowing political interests to influence recruitment could undermine their operations.
“When you have a selection procedure that was flawed because you politicised the place, brought in people to come and head the place when they have no business being there, they don’t know anything about being a BNI officer, they are not intelligence officers, and you flood the place with politicians and political artists, then you circumvent the standard procedure and you are going to have some of these problems,” he said.
Mr Kumadoe, however, defended the current leadership of the BNI, arguing that efforts to address longstanding problems within security institutions could bring such issues to light.
He said the leadership should be assessed in the context of the steps it is taking to improve the agency’s operations and uphold professional standards.
Drawing on his own experience in the intelligence field, he said the opportunity to serve under experienced officers had helped him develop the skills and integrity needed to contribute to national security.
By: Jacob Aggrey
