The Government through the Lands Ministry has dismissed claims of engaging the services of land guards to reclaim encroached state lands.

This comes after the Ghana Armed Forces and the Ghana Police Service were accused of hiring land guards to reclaim their encroached lands. 

This claim was allegedly made by the Chief Director of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, Professor Patrick Agbesinyale during a meeting with Parliament’s Lands and Forestry Committee on Monday, July 10. 

He is alleged to have said the security agencies apportion parts of the reclaimed lands to the land guards as payment for their work. 

He also claimed the government engages the services of land guards to retrieve and protect encroached state lands.

The State is reported to have contracted the services of a land guard to help reclaim encroached lands. 

This is in spite of the passage of the Vigilantism and Related Offenses Act, 2019(Act, 999) which clearly criminalises such activities. 

Clause 7(5) of the Act says; A person shall not directly or indirectly, engage a land guard to protect or guard the property of that person or any other person. 7(6) says; a person who contravenes subsection (5) commits an offense and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not less than 10 years and not more than 15 years.

But a release issued on Monday and signed by the Chief Director of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, described the report as false.

The Ministry indicated that it “does not contract the services of land guards in its operations.”

It however clarified that the Ministry through its agency, Lands Commission legally engaged the services of Aynok Holding Limited, a registered limited liability company to assist in reclaiming encroached government lands.

This engagement, according to them has been in effect since 2012.

“We wish to categorically state that Government and by extension the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources employs legal processes to reclaim all encroached state lands,” portions of the release stated.