We want our lagoon back - Residents of Ada to investors

The people of Ada in the Greater Accra Region took to the street of Big Ada on February 10, 2022, to protest against the lease of the Ada Songor Lagoon to Electrochem Ghana Limited.

Electrochem Ghana Limited owned by Dr MacDan Korley, a private investor was granted access to Ada Songor Lagoon on 19th September 2019 by a memorandum signed by the Ada Chiefs.

The chiefs and their subjects who staged the demonstration demanded that, the over 41,000 acres of the Ada Lagoon land should be given back to the indigence of Ada.

According to the people, the lagoon was their sole property and their livelihood depend on it hence they will continue to demonstrate to call to the attention of the Paramount Chief of Ada and the government to reverse the lease of the lagoon into the safe hands of the inhabitants of Ada.

Nene Dadebom Anim II, the chief of Salom who addressed the media said, the lease of the lagoon has displaced off about 35,000 active artisan sea salt producers of their work against 128 permanent workers the private investor planned to employ.

According to him, chiefs and their subjects living in communities around the enclave of the Lagoon have since suffered several brutalities from the private investor and the police since the privatization of the Lagoon.

“Nene Dadebom Anim II and twenty-seven others were arrested and spent about three weeks in police cells at Tema for no offense committed,” he said.
He added that “ Another chief, Nene Mayilo Dadebom Anim II was severely brutalized by the police, handcuffed, dragged on the ground, broke his arm, humiliated in front his people before bundled into a police car to cells at Tema.
Nene Dadebom Anim noted that proper consultation was not duly made before the chiefs handed the Songor land to the private investor.

“The Songor Lagoon and its adjoining lands belong to the Terkpebiawe Clan of Ada which they have constitutional right to be informed even if Government is said to be holding in trust for us as stated in the PND Law 287”, he said.



He added that, the private investor has not received any permit from the Ada West District where the lagoon is located to engage in mining activities in any of the communities in Ada as the law requires.

Nene Dadebom Anim has therefore called on the government to properly consult the Terkperbiawe Clan who by the admission of the Paramount Chief of Ada are the true owners of the Songor Lagoon.