By Adnan Adams Mohammed
A heavy cloud of anxiety hanging over the farming communities of Onomabo, Nfanti, and Oboahiafo has finally cleared.
Rightful landowners and local stakeholders have expressed profound relief and gratitude toward the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) and its Chief Executive, Dr. Ransford Anertey (Randy) Abbey, following a decisive intervention to protect their ancestral lands from fraudulent claimants.
The swift action from COCOBOD corporate headquarters comes on the heels of escalating tensions over a land valuation process tied to an upcoming investors’ farming project in the Eastern Region.
Swift Intervention Defuses Community Tension
For months, the rightful owners of the vast cocoa plantations faced aggressive attempts by illegal claimants identified as Mr. Ebenezer Lartey, Mr. George Mantey, and Mr. Ruben Nogbe to hijack a lucrative valuation and compensation package.
Responding to an urgent petition filed by the genuine custodial families, COCOBOD dispatched an enforcement team directly to Oboahiafo to meet face-to-face with the local farmers and restore order.
Commending the rapid response, affected cocoa farmers and community stakeholders publicly praised Dr. Randy Abbey for refusing to let corporate processes be manipulated by fraudsters.
“In response, affected cocoa farmers and stakeholders in these areas have commended the management of the COCOBOD and Dr. Abbey for acting on their petition,” community representatives stated during the violent-free engagement. “They praised the COCOBOD for taking measures to address land disputes by ensuring that the rightful landowners, rather than fraudulent parties, are engaged in the valuation of cocoa farms allocated to investors for the farming project.”
Setting the Record Straight: 1936 Deeds and Forgery Exposed
The crux of the dispute was blown wide open during the thorough engagement led by COCOBOD official Mr. Ebenezer Tetteh Doku. Investigations and historical records pulled from the Eastern Regional Lands Commission in Koforidua validated that the lands have legitimately belonged to three families since the early 20th century.
A historic Deed of Conveyance executed in 1936 confirms the property rests indisputably in the names of Captain Kwasi Labi, Otutu Kwasi, and Kwabena Donkoh. The petition submitted by family leaders Nana Abedi Mantey (Chief of Onomabo), Joseph Opare, and Nelson Agyei Lartey directly called out the fraudsters for attempting to bypass the true heirs:
“The land does not belong to them, and they have no legal authority to engage COCOBOD on any matter concerning it… We wish to notify your esteemed office that these individuals are imposters, fraudsters, and criminals attempting to misrepresent ownership of the said land.”
The petition further noted that the fraudulent trio went as far as “forging documents bearing the names of the Kwasi Labi family in an attempt to assume control over the land,” despite having absolutely no legal or ancestral ties to the property.
Protection and Fair Compensation Guaranteed
With COCOBOD now firmly on the side of the rule of law, the state organization has deployed its official valuers to the fields with strict instructions to interact exclusively with the verified family lines.
The COCOBOD field team left no room for ambiguity regarding Dr. Randy Abbey’s directives to safeguard the livelihoods of rural farmers:
“We are here with the aim of ensuring that rightful landowners not fraudulent parties are engaged in the valuation process.”
With the case officially reported to the Oda Divisional Police Command and the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) in Akim Oda, the rightful owners say they can finally sleep at night, knowing the state has stepped in to shield their generational wealth.
