By Edzorna Francis Mensah
The Minority in Parliament said the next NDC Government will take back what is rightfully owned by Ghanaians, should any private investor buy the Saglemi Affordable Housing Project as has been advertised.
According to the Minority in Parliament, an attempt by the current government “to give a dog a bad name in order to hang it”, by describing the “almost ” complete Mills-Mahamah housing project as a failed project is “unfortunate” and “we are warning people not buy these Houses because we shall take them back to The State by 2025”.
The Ranking Member on Works and Housing Committee of Parliament, Vincent Oppong Asamoah who led his colleagues and the Media to The Saglami site on Tuesday 22, November 2022 to ascertain the current state of projects was shocked to see damage done to the homes.
The visit revealed that unknown persons have gone in there, to steal all Electrical Cables, Electric Switches, Doors, Windows and they have completely destroyed the Wiring Systems, WCs, and Sewage Systems.
It was observed that about Five Policemen were on site keeping an eye on the property.
According to Mr. Asamoah a joint Memorandum to Parliament in September 2012, the completed houses were to be sold to public servants (including teachers, nurses, police etc.) and civil servants at a break-even price or cost.
He said, “proceeds from the sale of these houses which are to be advanced towards building of more homes would now become a mirage”.
He further submitted that, the initial agreement was for the ordinary Worker to own these homes through a mortgage scheme (Ghana Home Loans being the off-taker) but the current agenda by the government will deny these workers the opportunity to even apply and benefit from the facility since the “unnamed and faceless” private developer’s sole purpose is to make profit.
“Should we then take it that the six years of decision by Akufo Addo and Bawumia was deliberate so that they can put a company together and justify the need for those partially completed homes to be sold to them? he asked.
“In any case, if the government has decided to sell these homes built by a loan facility procured by the people of Ghana, shouldn’t the first option be to release them for use by our security services who are in dying need for accommodation?
After all, that will go a long way to ameliorate the accommodation hustle at the various barracks”.
The Minority is suggesting that the State Housing Company should be made to intervene and complete these houses and make them available for public servants to procure through the original financing arrangement of Ghana Home Loans Mortgage Financing.
