The Government of Ghana has said that it will ensure that the demolished Nigerian High Commission building is restored to its original state as soon as possible.

Ghana’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Botchwey (MP), disclosed this in a statement issued Thursday following the incident regarding the breach of the premises of the High Commission of Nigeria, located at 19/21 Julius Nyerere Street, Ringway Estates, East Ridge, Accra, on Friday, 19th June, 2020 at about 11: 00 p.m

The minister said that a committee comprising officials of the ministry, Ghana’s Lands Commission, National Security Secretariat and the Ghana Police Service was constituted to investigate the incident and make appropriate recommendations.

Botchwey said that preliminary findings by the committee revealed that the High Commission of Nigeria presented a letter referenced SCR/LCS 74/VOL.2/95 dated 7th August, 2000, granting allocation and right of entry to the High Commission, for a four-acre parcel of land in the Accra Osu Mantse Layout.

The findings also revealed that the High Commission of Nigeria further presented receipts of payments on the said land, made by Bankers Draft payable to the Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission, but added that the Land Title Certificate had not been issued to the High Commission.

The minister noted that findings also showed that Lands Commission stated that the said four-acre parcel of land was part of vested land which is owned by the Osu Stool and managed by the Lands Commission.

Botchwey noted that findings of the committee further revealed that in June 2019, the Osu Stool requested the Greater Accra Regional Lands Commission to grant a lease in respect of a part of the said land to a third party.

The minister said: “Lands Commission stated that per its processes of granting leases, its records did not reveal any previous transaction in respect of the land in question.

“The Lands Commission revealed that a letter referenced AC 14826 of 4th July, 2019, signed by the Regional Lands Officer and addressed to the High Commission of Nigeria, informed that the Osu Stool had requested the Lands Commission to grant a lease to a third party on the land in question. The Lands Commission, therefore, advised the High Commission of Nigeria to provide relevant documents on ownership of the land, but the former did not receive any response.

“Based on the silence of the High Commission of Nigeria, the Lands Commission went ahead and issued a Land Title Certificate covering the said parcel of land to a third party.

“The Lands Commission has confirmed that the letter of 7th August, 2000, presented by the High Commission of Nigeria granting allocation and right of entry to the High Commission, was genuine and, indeed, emanated from its Head Office.”