A group of irate youth calling themselves Concerned Citizens of Takoradi have protested against city authorities over what they describe as indiscriminate sale of public lands. They are more angered by the fact that automobile company Mechanical Lloyd, which is developing the land in question by the side of a major dual carriage road, has commenced construction work despite a court injunction restraining development on the disputed land until the matter is determined on October 22. The youth have thus questioned why construction workers on the land are being protected by the police with support from the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA) to go ahead with work there. The piece of land in question is located off the Cape Coast road in Takoradi in an enclave known as the Kasuarina belt. The land, which is a frontage of some existing companies namely Takoradi Floor Mills, Mantrac Ghana, Seaweld Engineering, ENI, Seethi Brothers, and Mabani & Mitsubishi Group, also serve as access routes to the companies some of whom have been in court over the sale to Mechanical Lloyd. According to the angry youth, aside the fact that Mechanical Lloyd will block the view of the existing companies, the land is crucial for expansion of the road infrastructure as the city expands and wonders why city authorities in cahoots with the Lands Commission and their agents have sold out the land to Mechanical Lloyd. Prior to the picketing around the disputed land by the youth on Monday, some assembly members of Takoradi are said to have raised the issue at one of their meetings and called for the sale to be withdrawn. The concerned citizens had also petitioned the Western Regional Minister Paul Evans Aidoo to intervene but all that have come to nothing. Wielding placards, some of which read “Stop the selling of land MCE and deal with the traffic and bad roads”, Mr. Mayor, stop selling Kasuarina Belt with deceptive technicalities to finance your campaign”. One of the initiators of the picketing, Billy Ampofo in an interview with Maxx News accused the Sekondi-Takoradi Mayor Capt. Anthony Cudjoe of complicity in the sale. “We are fighting against the illegal construction that is going on here. There is a court injunction and it’s been reported in the newspapers just as we are showing to you. We are not happy with what is happening. If indeed there are laws in this country then everybody must respect the law including the President. The Court has restrained them following a hearing on 22nd of this month. So why is this happening here? We are the youth and we are concerned so nobody is pushing us. The future belongs to us. This must be a reserved area because Takoradi is now expanding because of the oil. Now there is so much traffic and we don’t have to go and compensation when it is time for expansion. We must stop the future repercussions today” he said angrily. He says they will use every means possible to stop the ongoing construction works if the authorities do not heed to their call. Apart from the Sekondi-Takoradi Mayor who he accused of complicity in the sale, he also alleged that the likes of Education Minister Lee Ocran and the NDC’s Western Regional Organiser Col. Kaku Korsah had a hand in it. “If the Lands Commission and town planners are listening, they should hear very well. We are doing this picketing only to alert them. If they don’t come to do anything about it, the next time we will advise ourselves and go to them. We are ready to die for Takoradi so anything can happen. The Mayor of Takoradi Capt. Cudjoe has a role to play in all of this because as far as I know. We are concerned and will not allow Lee Ocran, Capt. Cudjoe, Kaku Korsah and others to sell this land” he stated. Attempts by Maxx News to speak to officials of the Lands Commission and the Town Planning Department at the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly Office have proven futile with both directing journalists to speak to the Metro Chief Executive, who is also unwilling to speak. There has been a massive scramble for lands in the Western Region particularly in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis since commercial oil production started.