The Greater Accra Regional Security Council (REGSEC) has formally transferred the administration of La Pleasure Beach to a newly constituted nine-member committee tasked with overseeing its operations.
The La Dade Kotopon Youth Association initiated legal action by filing a Writ of Summons addressing concerns related to the proper management of the beach and the accountability of revenue generated from its operations spanning the period from 2003 to November 2011. The legal action sought the establishment of an Interim Management Committee (IMC) to oversee the beach until a final resolution of the lawsuit.
The IMC, composed of nine members, was to include representatives from the Ghana Tourism Authority, La Traditional Council, and the La Dade Kotopon Youth Association. The revenue generated from the beach was to be distributed among these three entities based on a predetermined ratio.
The La Dade Kotopon Municipal Security Council raised concerns about potential disruptions to peace within the municipality by certain youth groups in response to the situation. Consequently, the matter was escalated to REGSEC to uphold law and order. It was explicitly stated that REGSEC would not interfere with the ongoing court proceedings but ensure peace prevail during the period.
To avoid a complete shutdown of the beach during the legal proceedings, REGSEC enlisted the assistance of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to manage the facility for the past six months.
During this period, the GRA successfully accumulated over 2 million Ghana cedis, which has now been handed over to the newly appointed beach management.
Following the conclusion of court proceedings on the matter, the REGSEC in a short ceremony handed over the management of the beach to the nine-member committee, the Chairman of the Greater Accra Regional Security Council, Henry Quartey said, “Because the feuding factions were already in court, and were mindful of the fact that we didn’t want to be cited for contempt or rather disrespect a court of competent jurisdiction, there were two offers on the table. One was to shut down the running of the La Beach entirely until such time that the matter is determined by the court. The other option was for REGSEC to get a government agency to hold the fort of the interim so that after the determination of the matter, monies realized at the beach would be given to them.”
He urged them to continue to uphold the prevailing peace at the beach and ensure that part of the revenue generated goes into developmental projects for the benefit of the people of La.