The Lands Commission is pushing back against the recent survey conducted by the United Nations Office of Drugs and (UNODC), which labeled the commission as the most corrupt public institution in Ghana.
The survey revealed that Lands Commission officers were reportedly receiving significant bribes, making them the top bribe-taking group among public officials in the country.
In response, the Executive Secretary of the Commission, James Dadson, is asserting that the individuals accepting bribes are not actual staff members of the commission.
He explained that many individuals are being ensnared by intermediaries who position themselves between the commission’s employees and the customers. This, in turn, leads to the solicitation of substantial sums of money.
A report by Myjoyonline.com quoted Mr Dadson as saying, “We are not trying to absolve our staff from any wrongdoing, as we acknowledge that we’re not immune to such actions within our office.
“Our main point is that if there are instances where our staff have engaged in such unacceptable practices, we are eager to be informed, as we have our own internal measures of accountability.”
He emphasized, “Every staff in the office is properly identified and so if somebody is out there soliciting and the person is not a staff and you go and transact with that person, the person takes money from you, then these researchers come and they interview you ‘oh I went to Lands and somebody took my money’ and it’s all about lands commission.”
Dadson continued, “We firmly believe that the approach taken by the researchers needs to be reevaluated. While acknowledging that the Lands Commission, like any institution, has its human aspects that might lead to certain misdeeds, I am confident that the majority of the reported bribes are not orchestrated by our staff members.”
He added that the bribery instances often involve external parties who engage with clients, often within the premises of chiefs, to facilitate land transactions.
These intermediaries may promise services like land registration after obtaining money from clients.
Despite this, Dadson noted that little can be done to curtail the activities of such intermediaries, often referred to as “goro boys,” within the premises of the Lands Commission due to its status as a public office.
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