New Patriotic Party stalwart, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, has reacted to a statement by the Lands Commission stating that the property housing his media house, Asaase Broadcasting Company Limited, is not a subject of a suit filed by the Judicial Service of Ghana against the government.

In a post shared on X on Wednesday, September 11, 2024, Gabby took jabs at the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, who leaked documents claiming that the property housing Asaase was one of the sold state properties listed in the Judicial Service suit, which the service is asking the court to declare was unlawfully sold.

Gabby, who indicated that he was not going to take any legal action against Ablakwa, accused the National Democratic Congress (NDC) legislator of deliberately spreading misinformation about the said property just to score political points.

“Now that the Lands Commission has come out with further particulars and incontrovertible facts over the actual properties (BY SITE PLANS) involved in the lawsuit by the Judicial Service (see attached statement), which prove that the property occupied by Asaase was never a part of the dispute, I have been asked if I would sue Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, MP, or demand a public apology from him for the baseless attacks on me, my wife and @asaaseradio995. My answer is simply ‘hell no!’.

“Ablakwa knew very well that the property with Asaase on was bought from a private person in 2020 and not from the state and should not have been a subject of his “state capture” of state lands associated with me. I have not bought state lands. Moreover, the said property was bare land when first sold by the state in 2006 to another private person of no relation to us. But in his usual orgasmic haste to tell a sensational story he chose to see the truth as an inconvenience,” Gabby wrote.

Gabby, a cousin of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, pointed out that Ablakwa has intentionally turned a blind eye to properties sold by governments of his party, in his ‘state capture’ exposés, including a property opposite Asaase Radio.

He claimed that a public servant was kicked out of that property and “sold off and now peacefully occupied by the immediate former chairperson of the Electoral Commission.”

The NPP stalwart asserted that if the MP truly wants to fight ‘state capture,’ the last person he would set his eyes on is he (Gabby) and his wife.

“If he cared truly about the controversy of the sale of state lands then Gabby, Nana Adjoa and Asaase would never have been his targets. All those lands in the writ, as indicated in the records, were sold by the government in which he served proudly. He has every right to be shamelessly biased and the constitutional right to pick and choose which public interest issues to highlight.

“But, he does not have the luxury to invent facts and seek to infest the general public with them without being corrected. I continue to wish him well and long life in opposition as it grants him the liberty, energy and time to pursue his public interest cases,” his post concluded.

What the Lands Commission said:

In a statement issued on September 9, 2024, the Lands Commission categorically refuted assertions that the property housing Asaase is No. 7, 5th Circular Road, Cantonments, listed in the suit of the Judicial Service.

The commission stated that its records show that Asaase has no interest in the said property, which is the subject matter of the Judicial Service suit.

“The land described as No. 7, 5th Circular Road, Cantonments, which is the subject matter of Suit No. LD/0526/2023 intituled Judicial Service of Ghana v The Lands Commission, Frimps Oil Company Ltd and the Attorney-General is separate and distinct from the land occupied by Asaase Broadcasting Company Limited at Cantonments. This land has never been owned or occupied by Asaase Broadcasting Company Limited.

“Following the commencement of the suit by the Judicial Service of Ghana, the Lands Commission, on July 19, 2023, applied for further and better particulars in respect of all the lands mentioned in the suit, and requested the site plans of the said lands. This is because the Commission accurately identifies land by the appropriate site plans, and not by house numbers," part of the statement read.

The commission also stated that the property currently housing Gabby’s media house is also on state land which was acquired in 1920 and subsequently assigned to Lilly Homes Limited.

“The land currently occupied by Asaase Broadcasting Company Limited, which also forms part of the public land acquired by a Certificate of Title dated June 7, 1920, has the following recorded transactions in respect of the property:

"a. Lease dated July 18, 2006, between the President of the Republic of Ghana (as Lessor) and Mr. Fosuaba Akwasi Mensah Banahene (as Lessee) for a term of ninety-nine (99) years;
b. Mortgage dated May 16, 2011, between Mr. Fosuaba Akwasi Mensah Banahene (as Mortgagor) and Prudential Bank Limited (as Mortgagee);
c. Discharge of Mortgage dated January 20, 2020, by Prudential Bank Limited in favour of Mr. Fosuaba Akwasi Mensah Banahene; and
d. Assignment dated March 4, 2020, between Mr. Fosuaba Akwasi Mensah Banahene (as Assignor) and Lilly Homes Limited (as Assignee),” the statement said.

Background:

The North Tongu legislator, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, implicated the wife of Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko in his latest exposé as part of his crusade for accountability.

Ablakwa had previously stated that the property housing Asaase Broadcasting Company (ABC) headquarters in Accra was unlawfully acquired from state property, claiming that said property is one of the properties of the Judicial Service of Ghana that the service said was illegally sold by the government.

However, his claims were dismissed by the management of Asaase Broadcasting Company (ABC).

In a statement dated September 2, 2024, Asaase Broadcasting Company Ltd. refuted Ablakwa's claims as "false and misleading," stating that the property was lawfully acquired by Lilly Homes Limited through legitimate means.

In response, Ablakwa has provided fresh revelations alleging affiliations of Lilly Homes Limited to Nana Adjoa Hackman, the wife of the director of Asaase Radio, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko.

According to him, Nana Adjoa Hackman is the sole shareholder of Lilly Homes Limited and also a director at Asaase Radio, raising concerns of conflict of interest.

View Gabby’s post below plus the statement from the Lands Commission below:

Now that the Lands Commission has come out with further particulars and incontrovertible facts over the actual properties (BY SITE PLANS) involved in the law suit by the Judicial Service (see attached statement), which prove that the property occupied by Asaase was never a part… pic.twitter.com/Je55S4dZoq

— Gabby Otchere-Darko (@GabbyDarko) September 11, 2024