President John Dramani Mahama has reportedly reversed the sale of lands belonging to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that were initiated by the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government.
According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, the president has ordered that all lands of his ministry either sold or allocated by the previous government be reversed.
Ablakwa, who is also the Member of Parliament of North Tongu, said that the order implies that prime lands sold by the Akufo-Addo government at Airport Residential Area are affected.
“President Mahama has directed that all allocations and sales of land belonging to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by the previous government be immediately reversed.
“Yesterday’s presidential directive will ensure that the Ministry’s adjoining land at Airport Residential, which some seven organisations and individuals claim to be the new owners of, will now be cancelled and preserved for the people of Ghana,” the minister wrote in a post shared on X on Wednesday, March 5, 2025.
He went on to thank the president for his decision and vowed that no land of the ministry would be sold under his watch.
“I am enormously grateful to President Mahama for his unwavering patriotic and decisive presidential backing.
“Under my watch as foreign minister, no land or property of the ministry, located either at home or abroad, will be sold. No more state capture!” his post concluded.
It can be recalled that President Mahama ordered the Lands Commission of Ghana to halt the sale of all public lands with immediate effect.
This directive was contained in a letter signed by the Executive Secretary to the President, Dr Callistus Mahama, to the Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission, which was dated January 9, 2025.
“I am directed to formally communicate a directive for the immediate cessation of all activities relating to the sale, lease, or processing of transactions involving State and Public Lands.
“This directive has been issued to protect and preserve State and Public Lands for the collective benefit of the citizenry and future generations. As such, all ongoing and pending transactions must be halted without delay to facilitate a comprehensive review of the current framework governing the management of such lands,” parts of the letter read.
The president also ordered his executive secretary to submit a comprehensive report on all recent land sales and ongoing transactions.
“You are further requested to submit a detailed report of all recent and ongoing transactions concerning State and Public Lands to this office within fourteen (14) days of this communication.
“Your immediate attention to this matter is required,” the letter concluded.