The Tema Regional Police Commander DCOP Mr Barnabas Nasumong and the regional crime officer, Chief Supt. Mr. Tony Adepa has been fingered in a ploy to assist an estate developer in taking over lands belonging to several households in Kpɔ Etɛ a community within the Ningo-Prampram District of the Greater Accra region.
The latest accusations levelled against the Tema Regional Command by the chiefs and people of Prampram follows a decision by the Command to allow an estate developer Bernard Agbotse who is at the centre of a recent illegal demolition exercise, to go ahead and demarcate the very land that has been in contention at the law court.
According to a report, the Tema Regional Police Command led by DCOP Nasumong has okayed a planned exercise by the said estate developer to storm the land with police protection and cordon it while the hundreds of displaced families whose properties were destroyed in the said illegal demolition exercise left without any justice.
It would be recalled that on November 16th and December 12th, 2023 a team of land guards with the support of some police personnel from the Tema Regional Police Command in vehicles with registration numbers GC 9482-20 and GP -734 respectively, stormed the Kpɔ Etɛ community to demolished several properties sitting on a disputed land without any court order or formal warning.
The Tema Police Command which is yet to publish its findings on the matter nor wait for the court to decide the rightful owners, has rather taken an entrenched position in helping out the said estate developer to forcefully take over the land through dubious means.
The latest development has prompted some agitations and anger among chiefs and residents of Prampram who have questioned the professionalism of the police in the discharge of their duty on the matter.
Paramount Stoolfather of Prampram, Osabu Abbey IV, when contacted on the issue, could not hide his disappointment in the Tema Regional Police Commander and his crime officer over their conduct in the matter. According to him, he fears the position taken by the regional command on the matter could lead to a serious bloodbath in the coming days if care is not taken.
Numo Osabu Abbey also questioned the neutrality of the Regional Police Crime Officer Chief Supt Adepa who he claims has failed to live up to expectations as duty bearer citing his (crime officer) bias in the 2023 Homowo festival celebrations where he the crime officer pitched camp with the other feuding faction in the Prampram chieftaincy dispute to prevent him the stool father from performing his mandated customary rites.
He called on the IGP and the interior minister to call the regional commander and his officers to order since their conduct in office could lead to renewed tensions in Prampram.
Meanwhile, checks indicate that some personnel of the Regional Police Command under the directive of the Regional Police Commander on Thursday morning, the 4th of April, provided security for the said estate developer Bernard Agbotse to undertake the plotting and demarcation of the disputed land at the hindsight of the Police Intelligence and Professional Bureau who are conducting investigations into the matter.
