The minority, according to Alhassan Suhuyini, the deputy ranking member of Parliament’s Lands and Forests Committee, is asking contract information between Aynok Services Ltd and the Lands Ministry.
He stated that the information is being collected to determine the minority’s next line of action over the Ministry’s alleged employment of land guards.
The discovery comes after the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources’ Chief Director, Professor Patrick Agbesinyale, allegedly indicated during a meeting with the Committee that the agency hires a land guard.
According to Mr Agbesinyale, the police and military even hire land guards to recover and safeguard government lands for a fee, which violates the Vigilantism and Related Offences Act.
Separate comments from the Lands Ministry, the Ghana Military Forces, and the Police Service vigorously disputed the charges.
They all maintain that they have never used the services of a land guard in any manner to defend or reclaim land.
However, the Lands Ministry clarified in their statement that they have engaged the services of “Aynok Holding Limited,” a registered limited liability company, to assist in reclaiming encroached government lands since 2012.
But speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show on Tuesday, Mr Suhuyini, who is also the Member of Parliament for Tamale North, expressed that the committee will request the contract details between the Lands Ministry and Aynok Holding Limited.
“We first want to introduce that contract to the committee and once that contract has been introduced to the committee, we can now invite him as a service provider to the ministry to speak on the contract and that is why we are focussed as a committee on the ministry providing us with that contract.”
