President John Dramani Mahama has announced he has ordered the Land Ministry to conduct a comprehensive audit of state lands leased or sold between 2017 and 2024.
According to Mahama, the audit will be conducted by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources in collaboration with the Lands Commission, will cover lands acquired for state purposes.
Speaking at the newly reconstituted National Lands Commission during their inauguration on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, John Mahama stated, “I’ve directed the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and the Lands Commission to immediately undertake a comprehensive audit of all state lands allocated, leased or sold, particularly between 2017 and 2024”.
“This audit will cover lands acquired for schools, hospitals, and public institutions, forest and ecological zones, and lawfully converted to private use, any transaction tainted by conflict of interest, abuse of power, or political patronage,” he explained.
Mahama warned that any transactions found to have been carried out illegally will be reversed, and the land reclaimed by the state.
President Mahama further dismissed claims that the government is witch-hunting opponents, adding that the process will be conducted fairly and transparently.
John Mahama added, “Where illegality or impropriety is discovered, such transactions will be reversed and the land will be recovered to the government by law. We’re not on a witch hunt. Those who have legally acquired land through proper processes need not fear. This exercise is about fairness and justice”.
President Mahama further revealed that there has been a temporary ban on state land transactions.
“Today, with the inauguration of the new commission and the adoption of robust accountability measures, I am pleased to announce that the ban on land transactions has been lifted”, he said.
It will be recalled, a member of the John Mahama Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) team Martin Kpebu has revealed the ORAL committee has a list of all former NPP government officials who bought state lands for cheap.
He asserted that ex-NPP government officials bought state lands around Cantonment at very cheap prices.
According to Lawyer Kpebu, Okuzeto Ablakwa has a long list of former NPP government appointees who bought this state lands for cheap even before the elections.
Speaking on TV3’s The Key Point on January 18, 2025, Martin Kpebu detailed, “We are making efforts to retrieve all the documents. If we gave them another chance, the whole of Ghana would have been gone. This state capture has to stop. Members of the erstwhile administration bought the lands at $12,000”.
“This list honourable Ablakwa had this list before the elections, you remember he kept making noise about it, interceptor general, he had these documents before ORAL came in, it is publicly available evidence, he had a long list ”, he added.
Martin Kpebu further mentioned some names of NPP officials who bought state lands for cheap, saying, “You will see Osei Nyarko, Henry Quartey, Bawumia, of course not directly his name, but underground people will tell you that is his, you will see other government appointees a lot”.
The private legal practitioner further revealed that state lands valued at $500,000 were sold to former president Akufo-Addo’s appointees for just $12,000.
He noted that the lands sold to Akufo-Addo appointees for just $12,000 were offered to a vegetable farmers’ association for $500,000.
Lawyer Kpebu revealed, “The vegetable farmers association was asked to pay $500,000 for one plot of land. That is where they keep the vegetables before they export them”.
“Just next to them, this same land was offered to ministers, etc., for GHC160,000. If you convert it, it’s $12,000. It’s within the same space. The documents are out there, and the land is around Cantonments”, he stated boldly.
Also, Dominic Nitiwul, the former Minister of Defence, has boldly accused the NDC of selling more state lands.
He asserted that it was under the NDC administration from 1996 to 1998 when that policy was started.
According to Dominic Nitiwul, the NPP government could only do a private partnership to some extent, but not sell the lands to individuals.
Speaking in an interview on Channel One TV’s Face to Face, Nitiwul detailed, “We have not given out any state lands to anybody. We never, we don’t do that. We can only do private partnerships to some extent. But to sell lands to individuals, we can’t. The general question of state lands has to be very holistic”.
“If there’s anybody who has taken state lands, if you put the two parties together, the NDC has sold more state lands to private individuals than the NPP”.
“All of them are selling under a policy called in-filing. It was under the NDC administration from 1996 to 1998 when that policy was started”, he added.
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