Suspend $1.3bn Sentuo Airport Garden City – Private citizen Samson Asaki petitions Mahama

Private individual Samson Asaki has requested President John Dramani Mahama to cease construction of the $1.3 billion Sentuo Airport Garden City until security experts evaluate the proximity of the project to military and aviation installations. Asaki, a concerned citizen, argues that the development on Giffard Road in the Airport Residential Area should undergo a second review.

The petition, submitted days after President Mahama broke ground on September 15, highlights concerns about the scale of the project: 582 apartments, a 600-room hotel, and a 2,500-capacity conference facility. Asaki cites four potential risks, including elevated vantage points over sensitive sites, insufficient oversight of surveillance and access control systems, unchecked individuals operating the facility, and potential threat escape routes due to its location near Accra International Airport.

The petition seeks ten actions, including halting construction until assessment, a multi-agency review from the Ministry of Defence, Ghana Armed Forces, National Security, Police, Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, and Ghana Airports Company Limited, a land-use review for height, density, and orientation, counter-surveillance checks, and beneficial ownership and source-of-funds investigations on developers.

Asaki emphasizes the petition is not anti-Chinese or anti-investment, stating that questioning now is better than addressing issues post-construction. The petition is forwarded to key officials, including the Chief of Staff, Ministers for Defence and Interior, National Security Coordinator, Chief of Defence Staff, IGP, GCAA, GACL heads, and three parliamentary committee chairs.

President Mahama, at the sod-breaking ceremony, stated Ghana welcomes investment, promising over 3,000 jobs, mostly for Ghanaians. As of now, no official response has been received from the Presidency, Sentuo Group, or security agencies to the petition.