Accra Lands: Restore Sanity

The inauguration of a Greater Accra Regional Lands Commission could not have come at a more auspicious time.

Coming into being on the heels of the operationalisation of fresh land laws in the country and in the face of nightmares associated with the acquisition of such immovable assets a lot is expected of this commission.

The assignment on the plate of the Accra Lands Commission is unlike its counterparts.

In a region unbeatable when it comes to land acquisition conundrums, occasioned by multiple land ownership with land guards constituting part of the challenges the task is not a walk in the park.

The near insurmountable hurdle in regularizing ownership of land cannot be ignored when the myriad challenges are being considered.

With the pedigree of the members of the commission standing tall there is light at the end of the tunnel we can bet.

The capacity of the Commission to clean the filthy stable and to put in place measures that would obviate future recurrence of the befuddlement that has become the picture of land acquisition in Accra is not in doubt.

All the Commission requires is the cooperation of the relevant bodies. Inter-sectoral approach to addressing the challenges should not be ignored in tackling the gargantuan problem.

The traditional bodies, law enforcement, the Greater Regional Coordinating Council and the MMDCAs all have important roles to play in addressing the land issues in Accra.

Fortunately, the Vice President's digitization programme has not left out land matters and everything about this asset. The reduction of the human interface in the many processes related to the formalization of land acquisition through the ongoing digitization programme is a welcome impetus at the beck and call of the Commission.

The foregone should be exploited to the maximum to reduce or even eliminate the loopholes which fraudulent persons exploit to their advantage even as prospective land buyers endure the ensuing pain.

It is exciting to note that Surveyor Yvonne Sowah the expert leading the Commission has served notice of working to reduce the turnaround period in acquiring land titles. We are looking forward to that day when like it obtains in registering motor vehicles, land registration too would enjoy similar traits of expedited service.

There is nothing impossible about this feat provided the newly inaugurated commission puts this task under its radar and sincerely so.

The Commission must especially reach out to the traditional authorities who have unfortunately not handled the subject of land purchase properly.

The multiple sale of land which constitutes the bulk of the challenges in such transactions is traceable to these traditional authorities whose assigns have worsened the already murky situations.

We want results which when chalked would change positively the acquisition of land in the Greater Accra Region and eliminate the nightmare associated with the transaction.