Lands and Forestry Committee is unaware of Gov’t Redevelopment Programme – Rashid Pelpuo

Ranking Member on the Lands and Forestry Committee in Parliament, Abdul- Rashid Pelpuo has said that the Committee has no knowledge about the Government Redevelopment Programme (GRP) being implemented by the Ministry of Works and Housing.

The GRP is a programme by the government to redevelop prime lands in the Cantonments, Kanda, West Ridge and Roman Ridge areas into public bungalows and housing units for the growing number of senior government and civil service officials.

The Ministry of Works and Housing in a statement claimed that the programme dates as far back as 1992 and has been implemented by successive governments. The Ministry said this in reaction to allegation by MP for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong, that government has sold the residence of the late Justice Marful-Sau to a private developer.

The Ministry added that Cabinet approved a revised scheme of the programme to include neighbouring areas like Osu Ringway, Airport residential area and Labone on May 14, 2018.

However, the Wa Central MP in an interview on ‘Ghana Tonight’ on Monday, January 15 stated categorically that the Committee has no knowledge about the programme.

“To tell you the truth, the Committee is unaware about the policy. We are unaware about the practical implementation of it, which is giving government the leeway to break down buildings, to sell out parts of buildings that have been in possession of government for a very long time”, he noted.

The legislator emphasised that the Committee is distressed about the current development of government’s demolition of buildings on prime lands and urged that more information on the programme should be provided to the Committee.

“We watch it with a lot of worry and we are concerned that the details are not discussed with us and we wish that some more information is given to us as to how exactly they are implementing that policy,” Mr Pelpuo said.

Mr. Pelpuo recalled that he had questioned the Works and Housing Minister on why government is involved in the sale of prime lands. The response, he said was, “he [The Minister] made reference to the fact that it’s been a policy of old and that he was just implementing a policy which had been carried to them.”