MR. Alban Bagbin, Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing (WRWH), on Tuesday pledged the sector’s support for the Rent Control Department (RCD) to fulfill its core mandate. He said the ministry would factor the department’s priority needs into its short, medium and long term plans. Mr. Bagbin stated these when he paid a visit to the department to interact with the management and complainants in Accra. He said computers, vehicles and other logistics would be provided to the department as and when the ministry received its allocation of equipment. He said the RCD played vital role in the housing sector, adding that the department had to exist to protect the right of every individual. Mr. Bagbin stated that there was an urgent need for the department to be relocated and human resource enhanced through capacity building. He said the government was in the process of constructing more housing units in the country. The minister said there was an on-going committee meeting to create the right environment for the progamme to commence. Mr. Bagbin explained that, when more houses were built, the pressure would go down on the department. He commended the effort of the rent officers and staff and urged them to work with all diligence since most of the people brought before the department was already traumatised. A tour to the typing room of the department by the Minister was a shocker when he saw type-writers being used in this current computerisation era. He assured the department that, it would provide them with at least two computers to assist it in discharging its duties. He said “when entering the office the complainants were saying they needed more officers, which shows that they sympathise with you despite the challenges they go through.” Mr. Bagbin advised the complainants to be patient with the rent officers when they brought cases before them. He also urged them not to resort to violence, but rather solve misunderstandings amicably through due process. For their part, the staff complained of lack of logistics and low staff strength, and called on the ministry to assist the department. The Ghanaian Times on Tuesday, May 24, 2011 published a story on the challenges confronting the Rent Control Department. It quoted the Principal Rent Officer, Mr. Frederick Tawiah, saying that lack of officers and staff was hindering the speedy resolution of tenancy cases which was on the increase. Mr. Tawiah said since 1996 when it was projected that five officers should man the department in Accra, there had been no revision and besides, the number now was even less than the five proposed. The Chief Rent Control Officer, Mr. Addo S. Dombo confirmed the story in an interview. He said out of the 37,265 complaints brought before the Rent Control Department countrywide, only 6,884 were settled, the Chief Rent Officer, told the Ghanaian Times, in Accra on Monday. That, he said, had left a total of 30,381 cases pending before the department. He said the situation was as a result of a number of constraints or challenges militating against the effective performance of the department. Among these constraints, Mr. Dombo said, were lack of adequate staff, both professional rent officers and supporting administrative personnel, inadequate logistics and equipment, lack of training and inadequate financial resources coupled with late release of funds. He said inadequate office accommodation was another serious challenge facing the department, adding that the department has only 41 offices nationwide while 20 new ones had been proposed to ensure effective and efficient performance. Source: The Ghanaian Times