North Tongu MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa says Ghanaians will soon have to pay ¢400 million as compensation for the land for the new Bank of Ghana headquarters building.

The lawmaker says this is due to the "terrible choice of this particular problematic land" which is a subject of litigation by President Akufo-Addo and the governor of the central bank.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, September 5, the former Deputy Information Minister said his investigation has unveiled that the land is at the centre of a legal dispute involving ITALCONSTRUCT INTERNATIONAL LIMITED, IVORY FINANCE COMPANY LIMITED, and the State Insurance Company (SIC).

"Ghanaians will be both shocked and outraged to discover that the parcel of land recklessly chosen for the palatial head office project is land which is the subject of an ongoing epic litigation."

"Painstaking parliamentary oversight has unravelled how due to the terrible choice of this particular problematic land, the suffering Ghanaian taxpayer by very conservative estimates would have to be prepared to pay in excess of a mind-boggling GH¢400 million in compensation."

"When President Akufo-Addo and MisGovernor Addison settled on the land in issue, they knew it was not a prudent and patriotic thing to do."

Since news broke of the central bank's construction of a new head office costing $250 million, many Ghanaians have expressed their displeasure about the move.

• Tell Ghanaians the actual cost of your insensitive new head office – Ablakwa to BoG Governor

According to them, the current economic crisis the country is facing does not allow for such luxurious activities.

But the Bank of Ghana has justified the construction of a new headquarters, insisting that its current head office, built in the 1960s, is no longer fit for purpose.

The Central Bank argued that a structural integrity assessment conducted on the current office revealed that the building did not satisfy the full complement of excess strength required for a building to be considered safe for usage.

“The outcome of the structural integrity work was that the main building does not satisfy the full complement of excess strength required for a building to be considered safe for usage.

“This means that in the case of a worst-case gravity and wind loading scenario, for example, unusually strong wind, the building may be significantly affected.”

Meanwhile, the  Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Ernest Addison has explained that the decision to construct a new head office building preceded the current economic crisis. 

He said the construction commenced in 2019 when the central bank was making profits. 

Speaking to the media on Monday, August 21, Dr Addison said the decision to construct the structure would not have been taken under the current circumstances. 

• ‘New BoG head office wouldn’t have been a priority project today’ – Governor

According to him, the project has been running for the past three years and is 50% complete.

“The decision to commence construction was taken in 2019 when the Bank generated profits. Appropriations for the Head Office were made each year from profits in 2019, 2020, and 2021. The project has, therefore, been going on for over 3 years.”

“The DDEP only took place in January 2023. If we were to be taking the decision today, building a legacy Head Office would not have been a priority. However, this is a project that has been running for 3 years and about 50 per cent complete.”