Lands Commission Steals Land

Belonging To Famous
Business Tycoon

It is now certain that official thievery has been the order of the day since the
establishment of the Lands Commission.
Established by the 1992 Constitution to manage public lands and any land vested in
the President, it is turning out to be an avenue for thieves who operate in cahoots
with their political godfathers.
Daily Post has stumbled on verifiable documents which indicate that the Lands
Commission in August 2008 stole two parcels of land belonging to a famous Ghanaian
business tycoon, Mr. Yaw Boakye, a son of the late E.O. Boakye, popularly known as
Boakye Mattress.
The Commission, acting under the grand connivance of some thieving officials, forged
documents and sold the land to Yekeima Properties Ghana Limited.
The 2.07-acre land in question is adjacent to the Golden Tulip Hotel in Accra.
The late Boakye Mattress purchased the land through due process in 1974 from the
government. Yet, through official thievery, a portion of the land has been taken
over by the said Yekeima Properties.
A document headed “Deed of Variation” which was used by some unscrupulous
officers at the Lands Commission is in our possession.
Though without the Official State Seal and the letter head of the Lands Commission,
the document bears the signature of then Chairman of the Commission, Mr. Eustace N.A
Kumi-Bruce.
It was further authenticated by the Registrar of Lands as genuine in the face of
clear forgery.
The crooks at the Commission who railroaded this transaction will be exposed in our
subsequent editions.
According to the transaction, Yekeima Properties settled ¢1 billion
(GH¢101,000.00) to the lessor, the Lands Commission.
The document states clearly that the whole transaction was done on behalf of then
President Kufuor by the Chairman of the Lands Commission.
The lessee, (Yekeima) was as per the “Deed of Variation” also required to settle
¢45million (GH¢4,500.00) per annum for the first ten years as ground floor rent.
Officials at the Lands Commission have expressed disquiet at this bogus transaction,
admitting the land really belongs to Boakye Mattress.
They were however unable to pinpoint the individuals at the Commission who
perpetrated this gigantic fraud.
In an interview, Chairman of the Commission Nana Adjei Ampofo admitted things were
not properly done under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) regime.
He confirmed that the land parcels in question belong to Boakye Mattress, disclosing
that a dispute has currently arisen over ownership.
Though the ownership of the land is clear, Nana Adjei Ampofo surprisingly says the
parties would have to go “for arbitration to determine the real owner after which
the Commission will release it.”
The NPP-appointed chairman of the Commission, Mr. Kumi-Bruce, who superintended over
this broad-day stealing could not be reached for comment as at press time yesterday.
Boakye Mattress maintains that the Commission has no option but to look at the facts
and make sure his land is released to him without delay.
He told Daily Post that he was shocked at how some officials at the Land Commission
could easily perpetuate such criminality.
The business tycoon is of the view that government must stamp its authority by
getting rid of crooks dressed as public officers at the Lands Commission.
During the eight-year tenure of the NPP, lands belonging to the Ga Traditional
Council and individuals were brazenly stolen and sold at a pittance to their
cronies, girlfriends and party apparatchiks.
The Gas have made several calls for their lands to be returned to them but to no
avail. However, President Mills has, in fulfillment of his campaign promise, started
returning the lands.
In the case of Boakye Mattress, genuine documents show that his father bought the
land on 24th October 1974.
During the heady days of the 1979 “House Cleaning Exercise” by the Armed Forces
Revolutionary Council (AFRC) and the revolution launched by the Provisional National
Defence Council (PNDC), the land remained intact.
The elaborate plans of Yaw Boakye to develop the land now called Boakye Mattress are
suffering a major jolt, courtesy the greed of the Kufuor government, where land
stealing and property grabbing was the order of the day.
More Anon!