Concerned residents in Eguafo in the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Municipality of the Central Region, have appealed to Mr Samuel Atta Mills, Member of Parliament and the Municipal Assembly to resolve a land dispute in the community that had stifled development.
Dozens of youth who gathered at the disputed land site also urged the parties including opinion leaders of the area to pursue an out-of-court settlement, saying, the dispute’s ripple effects damaged investor confidence.
They said a two-year land dispute between a family and an individual had left construction works on a sprawling 10-acre industrial park stalled, dashing the hopes of the youth who were employed at the site.
The prime site, located directly opposite Eguafo Senior High School and was once buzzing with promise, had its construction materials left at the mercy of criminals after the injunction.
The litigation is between Mr Victor Paa Kwesi Mensah, a resident of Ablekuma Fan Milk Junction in Accra, the plaintiff and Abusuapayin Kofi Ntoboah, head of the Anona Family in Eguafo, alongside an unnamed developer.
At a press conference in the community, Mr Emmanuel Quainoo, spokesperson, called for an amicable resolution of the matter for the stalled furniture factory poised to produce thousands of tables and chairs for schools across the municipality to continue.
He said the proposed industrial park which had employed many artisans in the community fir labour, would have a blend of factories that could generate jobs for the many youths who were wandering jobless in the streets.
Mr Quainoo added that the factory was also expected to empower women through on-site skills training in woodworking and assembling, as well as vocational apprenticeships for school dropouts.
He said, it would have spurred ancillary businesses like food vending and transport to enhance household incomes and reduce youth migration to urban centers for non-existent jobs.
He noted that the furniture factory aligned with national education goals under the Free Senior High School policy by supplying durable desks to relieve overcrowding in Central Region schools and cut procurement costs.
Another resident, Mr Stephen Appiah Nti, a 28-year-old former site foreman whose livelihood had once supported his wife and two young children, corroborated the concerns, and expressed deep anguish after two years of joblessness.
He lamented that the dispute had stolen their daily bread, as he woke up to a stalled site each day, and compared it to watching a feast prepared for the village only for greedy hands to smash the pots before anyone ate.
Trader, Madam Maame Akosua, whose roadside sachet water business had thrived on the daily rush of workers who bought from her, saw her business crumble overnight, forcing her to hawk.