Clerk of Parliament’s residence was sold in 2015 not 2019 – Lands Minister to Parliament

• Posted on November 24, 2023
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abdulai Jinapor, has offered clarification regarding the sale of the official residence of a sitting Clerk of Parliament.

Contrary to the information stated in the press release issued by Parliament on Wednesday, November 22, Jinapor revealed that the sale occurred in 2015, not 2019.

During the debate on the 2024 Budget, Mr Jinapor disclosed that his investigation into the matter, as the sector minister, indicated that the developer took possession of the land in 2019, not in 2015 as initially claimed by Parliament.

He stated, “Not too long ago, it was said that the accommodation of the clerk of parliament was sold in 2019. Mr. Speaker, I want to submit to this house, the House of Records that my checks at the Lands Commission suggest that the clerk of parliament’s accommodation or residence was sold in 2015 and not 2019. Mr. Speaker, the then Minister of Works and Housing gave an offer to a private developer in 2015.”

“A lease was granted to the developer in 2015. These records are unimpeachable. It happened in 2015 and not 2019. It just so happened that the developer, having bought the land in 2015, hadn’t been given an offer letter in 2015, and took possession in 2019,” Mr. Jinapor clarified.

According to a statement from the Parliamentary Service, the official accommodation of a sitting Clerk of Parliament, located at Cantonments was purportedly sold in 2019 to a private developer, along with other properties assigned to Parliament.

However, the Damongo MP rejected these allegations and presented fresh details on the matter.

The Speaker of Parliament has also alleged that his official bungalow was also sold to a private developer, a claim currently being investigated by the Lands Minister.