Nkonkonsa Celebrity Gossip From Africa
Some residents of Biemso number one in the Ahafo Ano South District of the Ashanti Region are daring the founder of the United Progressive Party Akwasi Addae Odike to absolve himself of accusations he sold a total of thirty nine acres of lands at Mankrano to illegal small scale (galamsey) miners.
The residents some of whom are royals indicate that Mr. Odike who was recently attacked by some thugs after accusing some Ashanti Chiefs of superintending the wanton destruction of lands sold to galamseyers; has no clean hands.
They told Ultimate News; Mr. Odike bought the lands from one Opanin kwaku Niamoah for a commercial orange farm.
“It turns out that some galamsey people came here and found that the land was rich with gold. They approached him in Kumasi and made an offer to buy the land,” an elder who gave his name as Prince Kofi Arthur narrated.
“He first sold to them 15 acres of land to begin working. Later, he sold them 24 acres of the lands.”
He pointed out that the former owners from whom he bought the parcels of land approached him later to beg for some of the proceeds after they realized he was making a fortune out of the land, a plea he rejected.
“The family was then in abject poverty. They went to tell him he bought the land but they didn’t know it had minerals so he should give them some of the money to bail them out of their hardships. Odike didn’t give them a pesewa,”
Lending support to the claims, another resident whom Ultimate News managed to reach on phone from the Biemso No 1. Community, Bediako Ababio indicated that the land belonged to his grandparents who are royals in the town.
“It belongs to my grandparents. He bought it some 18 years ago. I saw him growing oranges.
I remember he Odike sold the land to the galamsey people at the time the chief was dead. They brought excavators here to do the mining. If you come here now, the pits have not been reclaimed. They are still open because the Akyempemhene Oheneba came here to stop them from doing galamsey on his land,” he recounted.
When Ultimate News contacted Mr. Odike for response; he indicated he wasn’t going to respond to the claims.
He indicated however that he found nothing wrong with fighting against galamsey now if indeed it was the case that he was once neck deep in the illegal business but later saw need to abandon the trade.
