The Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has shared details of documents to support his claim of state capture by the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government. In a post shared on X on Wednesday, August 21, 2024, the MP said that the menace of state capture is more serious than he feared, adding that it is the reason the Akufo-Addo government has refused to publish records of the sale of state lands under it.
He said that while the government claims that it has not been selling state lands, the documents he has intercepted show that lands are being sold rampantly. “Fresh interceptions as part of my ongoing special parliamentary oversight on state capture reveal that the canker is deeper and more widespread than initially thought. “What has emerged clearly explains why the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government adamantly refuses to publish the full list on the sale of public lands despite parliament’s 3-year tussle with the executive to obtain the data,” the North Tongu legislator wrote. He added,
“The latest revelations are bound to create further credibility crisis for the deceptive Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government which consistently claims that our public lands are not being sold and that they are safe, secure and intact.” He went on to list state lands at AU Village/La Wireless enclave that have been allegedly sold to persons affiliated with the Akufo-Addo government and the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the dates they were sold as follows: Here’s a first batch of the interesting names contained in the latest interceptions on the sale of prime lands by President Akufo-Addo to his appointees and other NPP politically exposed persons at the AU Village/La Wireless enclave:
- Kate Gyamfua (NPP Women’s Organiser) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 31st August, 2022;
- Ibrahim Mohammed Awal (Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture at the time of purchase) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 30th November, 2020;
- Dr. Ernest Yedu Addison (Governor, Bank of Ghana) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 31st August, 2022;
- Elsie Addo Awadzi (Deputy Governor, Bank of Ghana) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 27th August, 2020;
- Maxwell Opoku-Afari (Deputy Governor, Bank of Ghana) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 31st August, 2022;
- Joseph Boahen Aidoo (CEO, COCOBOD) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 30th October, 2020;
- Dr. Janet Ampadu Fofie (Chairperson, Presidential Emoluments Committee) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 29th June, 2022;
- Kwabena Mantey Jectey Nyarko (Board Member, Ghana Airport Company Limited) — Purchased from President AkufoAddo on 22nd October, 2022;
- Anselm Ransford Adzete Sowah (Ghana’s High Commissioner to Canada) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 14th October, 2020;
- Anna Asare Oduro (Former NPP Women’s Organiser, Holland Chapter) — Purchased from President Akufo-Addo on 25th February, 2021. Ablakwa indicated that he would be providing more names of appointees who have acquired state lands in prime areas in the country.
“I shall continue to serialize the unconscionable and opaque land grab by the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government until they respond positively to the people’s legitimate demand for accountability by publishing the full and unredacted data on the sale and true status of public lands — after all, these lands belong to the Ghanaian people.” He added, “This is another reason why I am delighted that we are making progress on our Private Member’s Bill seeking to ban all politicians, politically exposed persons and other top public officials from buying state assets.”
Source: ghanaweb.com
