By Ragan M. Conteh

The situation at Charlotte village continues to become rough as some unknown thugs have recently vandalized homes of peaceful residents. These are citizens.

These residents say many, times without number, they report to relevant authorities about their predicaments especially on the grabbing of their land belonging to them.

They are bonafide Creole  landowners and have continued to express serious concerns over the silent of authority about the alleged grabbing of their lands at Charlotte.

Denis Valcasel, one of the proud landowners at Charlotte village, had told this medium that they are now in a state of serious calamity due to the humiliation and harassment meted on them by land grabbers.

“The Creole and landowning families are now in dilemma as intruders are making frantic efforts to evict them from their village.”

“Our village faces threats from intruders who often bring thugs to vandalize our homes,” Denis Valcarcel said.

Valcarcel says government intervention is promptly needed as people in the communities owning the lands are no longer respected and recognized in the community.

He said the worst of it is that all land grabbers are allegedly using either fake military officials and ex-combatants to threaten them the landowners.

“We have reported this life-threatening situation at Charlotte community but no government institution is seemingly trying to address the issue,” he said.

He said they have full documentation of all their lands and all families are  very much ready to give full account on how they became possessors of the land.

And that they are ready to produce their landing documents for scrutiny.

Rachel English confided to this medium that they are in serious calamity if actions are not taking immediately by state authorities.

She said almost all the land reserved for development projects is now on the wrong hands of private land buyers.

“At every moment those who are not even concerned at Charlotte are the very ones to continue to grab their lands. All those with huge acres of lands are people from upcountry.” The five acres land reserved for expansion of the old Anne Walsh School originally built at Charlotte, has itself been grabbed by private individuals.

When landowners stand up for our rights, the grabbers would send thugs beat and humiliate us,” Rachel English said.

Madam English further stated that the hill top has tilted in a way that it has posed serious threats to people.

She said the community is now under environmental threats due to land grabbing activities occurring on the hill top.

And so the situation requires government swift interventions.

Many stakeholders have accused the opposition Member of Parliament Hon Adam Conteh of grabbing their land, something Hon. Conteh has several times denied frantically.