The 25-acre premises of the former International Students Hostel at the Airport City in Accra that was sold to some prominent citizens of the country has been re-acquired by the Lands Commission and allocated to three state institutions. The property, initially allocated to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was re-zoned for residential development by the previous government in 2007, and sold to 36 interested buyers for GH¢20,000 or GH¢ 15,000 per plot. The 36 beneficiaries include high-ranking politicians, corporate executives and members of Parliament, the judiciary and the police service. The Lands Commission says with the powers conferred on it by law, it has withdrawn the sale offer, following a re-zoning of the area by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly to its original civil status, and appropriated it among the three institutions, namely the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ghana Revenue Authority and the Public Procurement Authority, for the construction of new offices. After the completion of what the commission described as "the legal and administrative imperatives", the new position was communicated to all the affected beneficiaries per a letter signed by the acting Lands Officer, Alhaji M.A. Alhassan. The letter said among other things that "the withdrawal has been necessitated by the re-zoning of the whole site by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly from residential use to its original use, that is, civic/cultural offices. "Under the circumstances the lease cannot be granted by the Lands Commission as residential development will no longer be permitted in the area. The Lands Commission will refund to you the official payments you made in respect of the allocation," it concluded. The Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission, Dr Odame Larbi, confirmed the action and added that most of the beneficiaries had acknowledged receipt of the letters and even initiated moves for the refund of their money. The Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the Lands Commission, Oko Nikoi Dzanie, also justified the action to nullify the sale of the land and said valuers, at the time the property was sold out, had priced a plot of land in that zone in excess of $150,000 but was given out at GH¢20,000 and GH¢15,000 per plot to the beneficiaries. Under the Constitution, the Lands Commission is responsible for the management of public and vested lands on behalf of the President, as well as the certification of stool lands transactions. This includes management of public (state/government) lands and any lands vested in the President in trust for respective stools and families. Source: Daily Graphic/Ghana