‘Real estate business in Ghana is money laundering’ - Sam George asserts

Member of Parliament for Ningo Prampram, Sam Nartey George, has raised concerns over the legitimacy of some real estate businesses operating in the country.

According to the lawmaker, the real estate sector has become a haven for individuals to launder money acquired through illicit means and ways.

Sam George who was speaking on the July 22nd edition of the Joy News' File lamented the inflated cost of pricing for real estate properties and high rise buildings which are often sold at exorbitant prices.

He suggested that individuals engaging in these money laundering schemes in the real estate sector often exchange these properties as part of a ploy to effectively ‘clean’ illicit funds.

“Real estate business in Ghana is money laundering. If our authorities want to deal with it, they will deal with it,” Sam George lamented.

He explained that “the cost of real estate in Ghana is not justifiable by any stretch. You keep seeing all these new high-rise buildings going up and they are selling them for half a million, a million dollars and they keep buying and buying amongst themselves."

"…I have dirty money to clean, I put up a real estate property, you have dirty money you come and buy the property from me and then automatically your money becomes clean, then tomorrow you also start building your own then I come back and buy and we are just cleaning the money,” Sam George added.

The Ningo Prampram MP further asserted that the funds generated from such illegal activities are subsequently used to finance political campaigns and among others.

His remarks are coming on the back of a recent newspaper report from The Chronicle detailing how a former Minster of Sanitation, Cecilia Abena Dapaah had been keeping huge sums of foreign currency in her home which was subsequently stolen by her two maids.

MA/NQ

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