In a determined effort to safeguard the nation’s resources, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has announced a sweeping review and audit of all recently sold public lands. This initiative, he explained, is designed to ensure that every transaction follows due process and that the state receives full value for its assets.
The Minister made this declaration during a visit by Vice President Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang to the Ministry. Addressing the gathering, he emphasized that the audit is not just a bureaucratic exercise, but a crucial step towards protecting public property and restoring public trust.
According to Minister Buah, the government’s action stems from mounting concerns that certain public lands, originally acquired for vital purposes like agriculture and national development, had been unlawfully sold or mismanaged by those entrusted with their care. “We began the processes of reviewing,” the Minister recounted. “One of the things that we all heard is that public lands that the government had taken for specific purposes, some for agriculture, somehow, the people who had been given the charge to protect these lands were abusing them.”
To tackle the problem head-on, the Ministry formed a dedicated team, led by the Deputy Minister, and secured cabinet approval for the audit. Their mission: scrutinize all land sales to confirm that proper valuations were conducted and that every step of the legal process was strictly followed.
The Minister did not mince words about the consequences for those found culpable. He warned that any official who breached procedures or failed to complete required processes would be publicly named and sanctioned, sending a clear message that abuses of public trust will not be tolerated. “By the time we finish, it will not cross the mind of any government official to take public lands because we will publish your name in every newspaper,” he asserted.
He further pledged that any transaction discovered to have flouted the rules would be nullified. “All public lands that had been sold are going under review to make sure there is value for money, and a process audit was done. Those that didn’t finish the processes are automatically canceled. We are going on to ensure we implement it to the letter to give confidence to the people of Ghana that we are going to protect public lands,” the Minister assured.
As the review gets underway, the government’s stance is clear: transparency, accountability, and the protection of public assets will remain non-negotiable priorities.
Source: Apexenewsgh.com
