Osu Divisional Council inaugurates committees

Accra, Sept. 22, GNA - Nii Stanley Adjiri-Blankson, Accra Metropolitan Chief Executive on Friday observed that indiscriminate sale of stool lands had made chiefs and their people strangers and tenants on their own land.

"It is a sad affair to observe that most Ga chiefs and their people have become strangers and tenants on their own land," he added. Nii Adjiri-Blankson made the observation when inaugurating Osu Divisional Council Lands Secretariat and Technical Committees in Accra. They are Finance and Investment, Planning and Development, Legal, Lands and Boundaries, Health, Sanitation and Population, Education, Youth and Welfare, Culture and Chieftaincy Affairs.

Members of the committees are expected to use their expertise in land issues, investment and financing to change the current low esteem of Osu to a more dignified and an elevated one.

The Mayor of Accra noted that some few individuals had sold family and stool lands, which should benefit families and communities for a pittance.

He said the practice of multiple sale of land with its attendant conflicts and unnecessary litigations had brought the authority and respect of chiefs expected to project dignity and nobility into disrepute in their communities.

Nii Adjiri-Blankson said "it is sad that most of our chiefs do not have palaces to enhance their status as traditional rulers. Most of the proceeds from the sale of lands have either been dissipated or too little for any substantial physical development" He called on Gas to rally behind the new Ga Mantse to move Ga State forward.

Nii Owuo III, Osu Mantse, asked members of the committees to assist with their expertise to rebuild the broken walls of Osu within five years.

"We have failed to build upon what our fathers bequeathed to us, we have also failed to maintain the worthy legacies of high educational standards and cutting edge skills," he added. Nii Owuo urged citizens of Osu to put the past behind them and move forward in a new spirit of 'Together we build Osu'. Dr Odame Larbi, Project Director, Land Administration Project (LAP) said the project sought to clearly define property rights, ensure security for property rights with its attendant benefits such as access to credit and reduction in the cost of transactions in transferring land rights.

The project also seek to address the weak land administration system characterized by fragmented institutions, indiscipline in the land markets as well as the determination of boundaries of customary owned lands, stools, skins and families. He said these were geared towards laying a solid foundation for self sustaining land administration system that was fair, efficient, transparent, cost effective and which guarantees security of tenure. The LAP, Dr Larbi said had great prospects for re- engineering the land administration system in the country adding, "expectations are great, but we must get it right at the onset. The challenge is balancing speed with accuracy, precaution and the active participation of stakeholders".

Ms Maame Ama Benson of Greater Accra Regional Office of the Office of Administration of Stool Lands noted that 55 per cent stool land mobilisation revenue went to Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies.

Twenty per cent of the revenue went to Traditional Councils and 25 per cent to stools and skins for the development of communities. She called on chiefs to utilise their share effectively and efficiently to develop the communities.

Ms Benson noted that the problem with Osu Traditional Council was that most of its lands had been taken over by government and indigenes that did not pay rent.

She explained that for every land sold, buyers were required by law to pay ground rent but however, noted that this had not been the case because custodians of land were only interested in selling land for huge sums to the detriment of monies that could be accrued for the development of their communities. Ms Benson therefore, called on chiefs to reduce their premium on land and rather insist on ground rent, which would help in the development of their communities.