The Tema Development Company Limited (TDC) has disclosed that its preliminary investigations have uncovered the irregular sale of several parcels of land in Tema Community 24 to individuals linked to the Ofori-Atta family, including the biological brother of ex-Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.
The revelation follows an internal review across various departments within the company, which has triggered calls for an external investigation due to what the TDC describes as significant irregularities.
There are suggestions that they exploited the presence of their relative, Alice Abena Ofori-Atta, who served as the Managing Director (MD), to acquire the properties. However, whether they paid the required price for the lands remains unclear.
Names cited in the alleged transactions include Eno Ofori-Atta, the ex-deputy Managing Director of the State-owned Agric Development Bank (ADB), and wife of Earl Ofori–Atta—a brother of former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta—alongside Dora Ofori-Atta, Nana Poku Ofori-Atta, Nana Kwame Ofori-Atta, Daniel Marfo Ofori-Atta, Stephen Asamoah Boateng, and Owusu Afriyie Prempeh. Several companies allegedly linked to these individuals have also been implicated.
Speaking at a press conference at the TDC office in Tema on Thursday, April 10, the new MD, Courage Makafui Nunekpeku, stated that the records available to the company suggest the sales occurred under the tenure of his predecessor, Alice Abena Ofori-Atta.
Mr Nunekpeku, stressed that the call for investigations was rooted in documented evidence and not conjecture.
He revealed that some companies were allocated as much as 25 acres of land, while others received between 2 and 10 acres of prime commercial plots.
He added that other areas under TDC’s control were also under scrutiny, as there were signs of similar irregularities.
“A land audit will be conducted to ensure accountability,” he said. “Nothing will stop the investigations we’re going to do. The only thing that can stop it will be probably the sector minister or the President. Apart from that, nothing is going to stop it. We will continue to do the land audit to make sure that people account for their stewardship.”
He further questioned the concentration of land ownership within one family:
“You cannot be the Managing Director that presides over the sale of land, properties to this level and think that you should not be called to account. Every ten plots in layer T of the categorised land, two or three plots belong to an Ofori-Atta. I mean, why? Is that the only family we have in Ghana? These are facts, nobody can change it.”
Earlier, the TDC management wrote to the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) requesting an investigation into the previous management’s alleged procurement breaches and financial malfeasance.
Among the concerns raised is a $1 million IT solution the company allegedly paid for but never received.
Mr Nunekpeku, disclosed this during his maiden engagement with staff last Friday, saying:
“We are looking into some IT contracts that we have awarded. We cannot pay $1 million, and I don’t have access to that document or that software. So, EOCO will intervene to see what went wrong.”
He added: “In addition to that, I have also written another letter to EOCO concerning another issue. I won’t disclose that one for now. They will also come in and do some investigations. We will be embarking on a lot of investigations into land issues.”
Addressing the staff durbar, the MD, said an audit conducted upon his assumption of office revealed that all of TDC’s lands, including reserved and union lands, had been sold—sometimes to non-existent companies and often without due process.
He said these findings necessitated EOCO’s invitation to probe the company’s operations and accounts. He urged management and staff to support his efforts to “reset” the company and reposition TDC Ghana to fulfil its original mandate.
He also outlined development plans, including expanding the Site 3 infilling project in Tema Community One and transforming the long-abandoned TDC Clubhouse into a modern hotel and recreational centre.
“A meeting has already been held with engineers, architects, and quantity surveyors. Architectural drawings are ready, and we aim to redevelop the clubhouse into a hotel to serve as an income-generating venture for the company,” he revealed.
He further announced that work would resume on all suspended 100-flat blocks at the Kpone Affordable Housing site, with the project expected to provide an additional 132 homes.
According to him, several investors have expressed interest in supporting the housing project. Management will engage with the union to explore partnership options for high-rise developments to meet increasing demand for accommodation.
Established in 1952 by an Act of Parliament, the Tema Development Corporation (as it was then known) was mandated to plan and develop approximately 63 square miles of public land and manage the township created to house the public and workers engaged in economic activities. TDC was granted a 125-year lease to manage this area, known as the Tema Acquisition Area.
In 2017, TDC Ghana Ltd, was converted into a limited liability company and given an expanded mandate to operate beyond the Tema Acquisition Area.