Accra, Nov.5, GNA – Management of West Hills Mall says it dumped rocks at China Mall’s entrance to protect its property from being encroached by China Mall and not to compete for clients.
“In order to fully appreciate the context within which the incident took place, it is important to note that this is simply a case of encroachment by China Mall on West Hills Mall land and an attempt by West Hills Mall’s management to secure and protect its land that has been intruded by China Mall during the past couple of months.”
A statement signed by Mr Olympio Agbodza, Assistant Assets Manager, Attafrica, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, said the attention of West Hills Mall had been drawn to media reports about an incident that occurred on Saturday, October 30, 2021, concerning an action taken by the Mall’s management and which resulted in the arrest of an official of the Mall.
It said these reports, and especially the conversation it had subsequently generated, were rather lopsided and misleading and must be corrected immediately to set the record straight.
The statement said shareholders had invested in excess of US$100 million and inclusive of US$10 million on an interchange that gave sole access to the Mall.
It said when they became aware that part of the property had been encroached upon, all they did was to take the necessary steps to protect their investments which, by the way, was partly owned by workers and pensioners of Ghana through the 40 percent stake which Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) owned in this investment.
The statement said the area which had been reported as being ‘the entrance’ and part of the ‘parking’ to the retailer known as China Mall, was actually the bona fide property of West Hills Mall.
It said West Hills Mall has a Land Title Certificate issued by the Lands Commission covering the land in question.
The statement said the encroachment by China Mall was confirmed by an independent land surveyor, of which China Mall was very much aware.
It said Management of West Hills Mall had in good faith engaged both China Mall and its Landlord, Alstonia Investments on the matter, prior to taking this action.
The statement said the ownership of that parcel of land by West Hills Mall had never been in dispute, and that barely two weeks ago, officials from West Hills Mall, Alstonia Investments, China Mall and some surveyors met on site, for a meeting which culminated in a decision by all parties that China Mall would create its own access and desist from using West Hills Mall land as access forthwith.
China Mall was to inform West Hills Mall by a certain date as to how it would implement the change, it said.
The statement said unfortunately, China Mall reneged on its promise and continued using the land without informing West Hills Mall by the agreed date of how and by when it would desist from the encroachment, or asking for permission to use the West Hills Mall land.
It said this was, therefore, not a case of competitor rivalry, as was being portrayed in the media but rather a case of West Hills Mall protecting the land that it legally owned and had paid for, and which was illegally being occupied by China Mall.
The statement said clearly, the offender succeeded in misleading not only the press but also the public, especially the communities that they served, the authorities as well as the Police, adding that the arrest and prosecution of their Facilities Portfolio Executive was unfortunate.
“We will in the coming days take all the necessary lawful actions to defend and protect the name of our company.”
“The least reference made to competitor rivalry the better because the presence of China Mall provides diversity in the offering that retailers like ourselves provide, and honestly, it is clear that we serve two very different markets in these communities,” it said.
The statement said West Hills Mall believed that laws protecting land ownership in Ghana should be respected and that China Mall should not be able to appropriate West Hills Mall’s land without proper authorization.
“You should also be aware that, together with Broll Properties, we are championing the formation of the Ghana Property Owners Association for the Retail Sector, so having critical mass can only help us in addressing the challenges facing this sector so we welcome competition gladly,” it said.