Ganta — Nimba County’s commercial city of Ganta was brought to a standstill on Tuesday morning as hundreds of demonstrators blocked roads and danced in the streets, following the burning of the biggest warehouse in the city, destroying over LD$ 34 million worth of goods.
The burning of the warehouse came a day after the 8th Judicial Circuit Court in Nimba County ruled in favor of a resident of Ganta, Fred Suah, against the Donzos, Sando, Koroma and Jabarteh families in a land dispute case that had lingered for over 12 years.
On Monday, court officers were accompanied by officers of the EPS to effect the demolition of 10 houses owned by the Donzos, Sandos, Koroma and Jabateh families on the two blocks of the disputed land situated on the Saclepia road.
During the process, some of the victims, mainly from the Mandingo ethnic group, vowed to “die for their land”, while others threatened to go after Suah for “influencing the court” to rule against them”, claiming to be legitimate owners of the land.
Following the destruction of the warehouse, angry crowd gathered before the mosque in Ganta and threatened to set it ablaze before their plans were averted by police officers.
Some residents of the city pointed accusing fingers at Jabateh family for being the masterminds for the destruction of the mosque, but the head of the family rejected the allegations, describing it as a diabolical lie.
Details to follow…