By Aaron BOTCHWEY and Harrison MARTEY
As part of plans to streamline the process of land acquisition within the Dawhenya enclave, the Arden Darpoh Family, the prominent family in the Dawhenya township, last week Friday opened a new land secretariat.
The newly commissioned secretariat marks a significant milestone in the family’s commitment to land management and community development.
Land litigations have become a burden to most people, partly due its multiple sale to unsuspecting people. The situation has often let to violent clashes which have somewhat resulted in irreparable injuries and even death.
But the Arden Darpoh Family have resolved to do things differently. So, the newly established secretariat is to help ensure the appropriate documents given to those who purchase lands are legitimate and without any dispute. The office is located in Osonshi at Dawhenya.
Speaking at the event, Chief of Dawhenya Nene Tetteh Kodie Arden IV said the secretariat is important for the family. He said it will help streamline the operations of land acquisition, protection and documentation in the entire Dawhenya community, as they seek to address land litigations.
He said controversies around land acquisition have resulted in people losing confidence in family lands, and he is hopeful the customary land secretariat will help win back the public and community.
“Today, everyone holds himself up as land owner and a parcel of land is therefore sold to multiple people-it is an unpleasant situation that doesn’t give people the needed peace. Again, the secretariat will help avert avert situations where land disputes either end up at the police or the court, which often times do not result in immediate resolution.”
Nii Kodie Arden IV is therefore confident the customary land secretariat will help assuage the fears of those who do business with them..
For his part, the Acting Greater Accra Regional Lands Officer of the Lands Commission, Timothy Anyidoho said the secretariat is a creature of law and therefore legitimate. The 2020 Land Act 1036 empowers families to have a secretariat to help administer their lands approrpiately, and in order to avoid conflict.
Mr. Anyidoho therefore praised the familiy and said the Lands Commission will assist with the appropriate skill sets to help run the secretariat in the right manner. According to him, the secretariat is not in conflict with the Prampram Land Secretariat, because the Arden Darpoh family will deal directly with lands in their jurisdiction. “Appropriate documentation inures to the benefit of all the parties involved,” he added.
He again said the family first approached the Lands Commission and the greenlight was given for them to the secretariat. Mr. Anyidoho also said the commission will work with the secretariat to ensure records between the two are the same, and will avoid duplication.
The new Secretariat is poised to serve as a crucial hub for land-related activities, offering services such as land documentation, dispute resolution, and title registration. With this launch, the Arden Darpoh Family reaffirms its dedication to transparency, efficiency, and the sustainable development of their ancestral lands.
The establishment of the Land Secretariat is expected to significantly improve land administration and contribute to the socio-economic growth of the Dawhenya and Prampram areas and address the challenges associated with land dispute.
On the deployment of youth groups as vigilantes to protect lands, Numo William Doku Darpoh, the Principal Elder of Charwayan and Head of First Gate, said with the education they have been given by the Land Commission, it is now their turn to educate the youth groups and avert their minds to the appropriate ways of protecting their lands.
Photos: PramCitiTV.
