The management of Sunyani Technical University (STU) has raised alarm over increasing encroachment on portions of its 35-hectare land, saying efforts to reclaim the property have been met with violent resistance from persons believed to be land guards.
Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Thursday, November 6, 2025, the Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Kwadwo Adinkra Appiah, said the institution was struggling to assert control over its legally acquired land due to the activities of illegal occupants.
He revealed that the encroachers had hired land guards armed with machetes to ward off anyone who attempted to access or develop parts of the property.
“We have built almost across, but unfortunately, on the other side, we didn’t have any presence, and that is where they started. It has been very difficult for us,” Professor Appiah told the Committee.
He recounted several unsuccessful attempts by the University to secure its land, including efforts to construct a fence wall that was later demolished by the encroachers.
“We attempted to build a fence wall there, but they demolished it. Anything we put there, they demolish it. We even placed two metal containers there, thinking they would not touch them. But they have sold the lands around the container. If you attempt to go there, you will find people with machetes waiting to harm you,” he lamented.
The Pro Vice-Chancellor said the University’s management has been forced to suspend development plans in the affected area for the safety of staff and students.
He appealed to the government and security agencies to intervene urgently to help the University reclaim its land, warning that continued encroachment could undermine the school’s long-term expansion and infrastructure projects.
The alarming situation at Sunyani Technical University adds to the growing list of public institutions facing land encroachment across the country, despite repeated calls for stronger enforcement of land protection laws.
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