<<Print>>

The Greater Accra Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mike Oquaye Jnr. has described a warning by President Mahama that government would not deal leniently with estate developers who encroach on government lands, as �an empty barrel�. In his view, the directive reminds him of the adage, �actions speak louder than words� �but when words are beginning to be louder than actions, then you should know that nothing is gonna come out of it�. �The talk is empty and in this case, not necessarily the person who is saying it because we all know he is our President�.but I am saying that, just as the rolling barrels make the most noise, because there is nothing in the barrel, there is nothing in the policy and the policy is just making noise,� Mr. Oquaye Jnr. asserted. Contributing to a panel discussion on Metro TV�s �Good Morning Ghana� programme, the Deputy Scribe of the Greater Accra branch of the NPP made these comments after President John Dramani Mahama cautioned estate developers to desist from encroaching on government lands. He reiterated government�s commitment to ensuring food security, sufficiency, and to be a net exporter to neighboring countries in the coming years by putting to use some of these lands for agriculture purposes. President Mahama issued the warning on Saturday when he inspected the Dawhenya integrated Rural Development project which is currently under rehabilitation. Notwithstanding, Mike Oquaye Jnr., who is also a trained lawyer believes the best solution is for government to do �compulsory acquisition� in areas it has earmarked for agriculture and not just issue warnings.