BY Grace Zigah
A heated land dispute in the Volta Region has landed before the Sogakope High Court, as the family of the late Elsie Worlali Ami Dzidzienyo and B.K.K. Pomeyie accuses two men of illegally demolishing their ancestral home in Keta.
The plaintiff, businessman and former National Security operative, Richard Pomeyie, alleges that Anthony Alan Amadeo and Michael Attipoe, Chief Executive Officer of Lagoon Beach Hotel Keta, unlawfully entered and pulled down his parents’ long-standing family house without any court order.
According to him, the defendants carried out the demolition on July 1, 2025, and have since attempted to register the land and secure a building permit from the Keta Municipal Assembly.
Legal Action Initiated
In response, Pomeyie has instructed his lawyers, led by Isaac Aidoo Esq. of Rohi Legal Consult, to file a writ of summons and statement of claim together with a motion for interlocutory injunction.
The injunction, if granted, will prevent the defendants, their agents, or workers from developing the land until the substantive case is determined.
Court filings reveal that the plaintiff’s family has occupied and used the land for over three decades, making it part of their heritage.
Pomeyie argues that the demolition and subsequent development works amount to trespass and could cause irreparable damage if not restrained.
Destroyed Records
One of the difficulties in the case, according to the supporting affidavit, is that the family’s original property documents were destroyed years ago by tidal waves that frequently plague Keta’s coastal communities.
However, the plaintiff insists he has photographic evidence and other exhibits showing his family’s continuous residence on the land for more than 30 years.
He further cites provisions of the Limitation Act, 1972 (N.R.C.D. 54), which provides that long and uninterrupted occupation of land establishes legal rights over it.
His lawyers argue that based on this principle, his family has full ownership and control of the disputed property.
Defendants Accused of Altering Status Quo
The plaintiff maintains that the defendants’ actions—demolishing existing structures and commencing new construction—are a calculated attempt to alter the status quo while the ownership of the land remains unresolved.
He contends that should the defendants be allowed to continue, any resulting damage would be beyond compensation.
Court Hearing Ahead
The High Court in Sogakope is expected to hear the application for interlocutory injunction on September 23, 2025.
