By Celestine Avi and Seth Eyiah
Lusaka, Zambia — President John Dramani Mahama has announced that government will soon lay before Parliament the Divestiture of Public Property Bill, a proposed law aimed at regulating the sale, transfer, and privatization of state-owned assets to safeguard the public interest and improve economic efficiency.
According to the President, the Bill will make parliamentary approval mandatory before any public property, particularly government lands and assets, can be sold or transferred.
“If you want to sell public property such as landed assets, you must seek the approval of the representatives of the people, which is Parliament,” President Mahama stated. “Any public land transaction will not be processed at the Lands Commission unless it is ratified by Parliament.”
The President explained that the measure is intended to halt what he described as the rampant sale and mortgaging of government assets without public oversight.
President Mahama made these remarks on Wednesday evening during an engagement with the Ghanaian diaspora community living in Lusaka, Zambia, as part of his three-day state visit to the Southern African nation at the invitation of President Hakainde Hichilema.
Touching on state-owned enterprises, the President revealed that the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) is currently operational again, noting that under the previous administration there were attempts to hand the refinery over to a private entity for 15 years.
“One government cannot just come and mortgage public property without the say of the people’s representatives,” he said, questioning the lack of public accountability in such arrangements.
He stressed that once the Divestiture of Public Property Bill is passed, any plan to auction public land, sell government property, or divest a state factory would require parliamentary scrutiny and approval.
“If Parliament thinks it is fair, they will approve it. If they think it is not fair, they will not approve it, and if they don’t approve it, it cannot happen,” the President said, adding that he has directed the Attorney-General to begin work on the legislation.
Land Reforms and Digitisation
On land administration, President Mahama disclosed that government is introducing blockchain technology to digitise records at the Lands Registry, a move aimed at addressing challenges in land registration and title processing.
He noted that beyond bureaucratic delays, one of the major issues in land administration is the multiple sale of family and stool lands by unauthorized persons.
“Many people buy land without conducting proper searches at the Lands Commission. They pay money to someone, and later the real owner shows up,” he explained.
According to the President, digitisation will create a transparent record of land ownership, enabling buyers to verify legitimate ownership before entering into transactions.
“Once the records are digitised, you can trace the history of a land, from who owned it to who owns it currently, so you know you are dealing with the rightful owner,” he said.
Recovery of Public Lands
President Mahama further revealed that a government committee set up to review the status of public lands has submitted its report, leading to the cancellation of several unprocessed leases.
“These were public lands that were simply distributed and looted,” he said, citing cases where government land purchased for as low as GH¢150,000 was resold for as much as US$2 million in prime areas of Accra.
He explained that while some developments had already been completed, making demolition impractical, affected persons with valid titles are being asked to pay the true market value of the land.
“Land in places like Airport Residential could not have been sold at GH¢140,000,” he noted, adding that all ongoing but uncompleted land transactions at the time his administration took office have been halted and the lands reclaimed.
However, he cautioned that reclaiming public lands must go hand in hand with safeguards to prevent future abuse.
“When we take these lands back, we must ensure that another group does not come and start selling them again,” President Mahama emphasized.
