At no point was Speaker Bagbin’s official residence sold to a private developer — Lands Commission

The Lands Commission has denied reports that the official residence of the Speaker of Parliament in Cantonments, Accra, was sold to a private developer without the knowledge of the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Alban Bagbin.

In a press statement issued on Monday, November 20, the Lands Commission said its records show the land in question has been used as the official residence of the Speaker of Parliament since 2003.

The statement signed by Acting Executive Secretary Benjamin Arthur sought to provide clarity on the status of the property following the revelation by Speaker Bagbin about a purported attempt to sell the residence at a forum today.

MP for South Dayi, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor quoted the Speaker as saying "The Speaker’s Residence at Cantonment in Accra was sold to a private Developer whilst he was in that residence. The Lands Commission discovered this only when the Developer went to register it."

However, the Lands Commission said: "Records available to the Commission indicate that...the land has always been used as the official residence of the Rt. Hon. Speaker of Parliament."

It explained that the Parliamentary Service had applied to regularise their occupation of the approximately 1.66-acre land in November 2022.

This was approved by the Regional Lands Commission in December after all statutory processes, including planning approval from the La Dadekotopon Municipal Assembly.

In February 2023, the Lands Commission offered to allocate the land to Parliamentary Service, which was accepted after paying the requisite fees.

A Certificate of Allocation was issued in April, the Commission noted.

Mr. Arthur insisted "at no point in time was the said property sold to a private developer by the Lands Commission," promising the commission's commitment "to prudent and efficient management of public lands in the national interest."