Samuel Okudjeto Ablakwa, the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, and members of the minority caucus of Parliament, representatives from Organised Labour, the Ga Dangme Caucus, and a number of Ghanaians, staged a demonstration on Tuesday June 18, 2024.
This demonstration aimed to pressure the government into stopping the sale of a 60% stake in four hotels owned by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) to Rock City Hotel Limited, owned by Dr. Bryan Acheampong, the Minister of Food and Agriculture.
The hotels in question are Labadi Beach Hotel, La Palm Royal Beach Resort, Elmina Beach Resort, Ridge Royal Hotel, Busua Beach Resort, and Trust Lodge Hotel.
Protestors gathered at Labadi Beach Hotel and marched to Christ the King to submit a petition to the Presidency.
Mr. Ablakwa emphasized that the demonstration sought to push the government to prevent SSNIT from selling the hotels. He argued that the hotels were profitable and not operating at a loss as claimed by SSNIT, highlighting that the financial statements from the previous year showed significant profits, particularly for Labadi Beach Hotel. Ablakwa contended that the hotels were generating more profit than Rock City Hotel, the potential buyer.
He stressed that these hotels were assets belonging to workers whose pensions were invested in SSNIT and should not be sold to politically connected individuals of the current government.
The police stopped the demonstrators midway through their march. Instead of reaching the agreed endpoint endpoint at Christ The King, they were stopped on the switchback road in Cantonment, Accra. When the protesters attempted to push past the police, tear gas was fired, an action which was condemned by the chief priest of the La Traditional Council, Numoo Yemi VII and the organizers.
Deputy Chief of Staff Emmanuel Adumoa Bossman, acting on behalf of the presidency, accepted the petition from the protesters and assured them that he would deliver it to the President.