The Right to Information Commission has fined the Lands Commission some GHC100, 000 for refusing to release information to pressure group, OccupyGhana.

According to OccupyGhana, the penalty imposed shall attract an additional default penalty rate of 10% in the event of default for any additional 14 days thereafter. It revealed that since news emerged about an attempt to “return” Achimota Forest lands to alleged “original owners”, it has expressed its strong rejection of that move, questioning its legality and constitutionality.

OccupyGhana explained that since 2nd June 2022, it has demanded from the Lands Commission, information on all lands alleged to have been returned. It stated that contrary to its expectations, the Lands Commission, which should be an impartial, fiducial and proactively accountable manager of State lands, adopted one “bizarre subterfuge” after another in simply refusing to provide the information.

Additionally, the group highlighted that for a while, it tolerated the “risible excuses”, starting with the 7th June 2022 demand for the details of any “personality within our organization, to the 21 June 2022 blame of its own manual systems”.

Nonetheless, it noted that when on 2nd September 2022, the Lands Commission finally claimed that it was waiting for the Attorney-General’s advice on whether the consent of the persons to whom the State lands had allegedly been transferred was required to provide the information, it was compelled to seek the RIC’s intervention.

“OccupyGhana is grateful that the Right to Information Commission (‘RIC’) has delivered a ruling, ordering Lands Commission to release requested information on ‘returned’ State lands to OccupyGhana, and imposing an ‘administrative fine’ of GHC100,000 on the Lands Commission for its conduct.”
OccupyGhana

Lands Commission’s failure to comply with RIC

As expected, OccupyGhana indicated that the Lands Commission could not comply with the RIC’s “Request for Response” to its application because they did not “dare repeat those laughable excuses” before that statutory body. To this end, it expressed gratitude that the RIC condemned the Lands Commission’s evasive and delay tactics, and found the Lands Commission guilty of “a gross disregard” under the law and a posture that “bespeaks of inertia”.

“The RIC also found that ‘being a public-interest pressure group, [OccupyGhana] is well within its mandate and interest to ensure that property belonging to the State is well preserved for the benefit of the country and that management of such State property is done in an accountable manner.”
OccupyGhana

According to OccupyGhana, the RIC in its judgement explained that no person’s consent should be required for such information to be released to well-meaning Ghanaians. Also, it noted that no such consent should be required as a condition precedent for exacting accountability from Government or a public institution like the Lands Commission in its management of State resources or assets.

Among other things, the Commission has ordered the Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission to ensure that some pieces of information are released to the Applicant, OccupyGhana, not later than 14 days after receipt of the decision. This includes a list of all public lands over which government’s ownership or control has been relinquished, and the names of the person to whom those lands have been released and the respective sizes and locations (suburbs, towns/cities and regions) of all such lands.

Furthermore, OccupyGhana has assured Ghanaians that it will get to the bottom of the matter, as already, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources and the Lands Commission have separately, admitted in writing to the group that they do not have in place the constitutionally-mandated, presidentially-approved, binding Ministerial Policy Directions of a general nature, concerning this or any of the Land’s Commission’s functions.

Additionally, the group emphasized that it is convinced that the Lands Commission, as managers, cannot give out the country’s lands to alleged original owners.

“We therefore promise both the Lands Commission and the Government that they have not fully and finally heard from us yet. And, while we are grateful for this ruling, we regret that the GHC100,000 administrative fine and any default penalties will be paid out of public funds, and not by those whose direct actions and omissions have led to this state of affairs.”
OccupyGhana