Agona Assembly embarks on demolishing exercise

Agona Swedru, March 31, GNA - The Agona District Assembly on Tuesday pulled down three structures in an operation to demolish unauthorised structures in the district to avert future disasters. Mr G.B.L. Siilo, District Co-ordinating Director (DCD) who disclosed this to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview at Agona Swedru said the exercise would be a continuous affair. He said the three unauthorised structures, consisting of two buildings and a kiosk, were pulled down on Tuesday because the owners had refused to heed the directives given by the Statutory Planning Committee of the Assembly .

Mr Siilo warned that all structures on lands belonging to the Agona District Assembly and the land, which had been developed by individuals would be demolished. The DCD said areas which had been earmarked in future for recreational centres and roads and which had been sold secretly by some government officials to individuals and developed would not be spared.

Mr Ebenezer Annor- Kwafo, Agona District Engineer told GNA that the statutory planning committee issued several warning letters to the owner of a kiosk, seller of alcoholic beverages at the Swedru Sports Stadium, to remove it but all to no avail. According to him, the committee members inspected the kiosk which had been built on the side of the stadium and pointed out that the drinking bar should be removed.

Mr Annor-Kwafo said the two other buildings at the Swedru Chapel Square and the by-pass, which were pulled down had blocked access roads in the town. He explained that the by-pass structure had been built on the reservation of the road, which was against Act 462 of section 64 of the Local Government Act which prohibited unauthorised structures. Mr Annor-Kwafo said the assembly would continue the exercise, even though the assembly needed to pump huge sums of money into the execution of the operation.