President John Dramani Mahama has warned that corruption within the Lands Commission will no longer be tolerated, urging the newly constituted Governing Board to enforce strict accountability measures.

With more than 80% of Ghana’s land under customary ownership, the President also called on traditional authorities to work closely with the state to ensure fairness, particularly for women and young people, while guaranteeing transparent distribution of revenues from natural resources.

“Our ancestors taught us that land is sacred. We do not inherit land from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children. Let us act boldly, wisely, and selflessly to protect our land, reform our systems, and restore public trust,” Mahama said.

He charged the new Commission to lead a generational transformation in land administration, describing the inauguration of the Governing Board as “the end of impunity and the beginning of integrity” in Ghana’s land management.

Speaking at the ceremony, the President described the event as a defining moment in Ghana’s democratic and developmental journey.

He emphasised that the inauguration was not just a statutory obligation but “a bold first step in a comprehensive national reset” to rebuild Ghana’s land governance system for the future.

“Land is at the heart of our development. It is the basis for agriculture, housing, industrialisation, transportation, environmental preservation, and cultural identity.

Yet, for far too long, our land administration system has become a symbol of everything we seek to change in Ghana—confusion, conflict, extortion, and violence,” he said.

Mahama criticised decades of mismanagement, political interference, and corruption that have eroded public trust in the Lands Commission, noting that prime state lands, ecological buffer zones, forest reserves, and even lagoons had been illegally appropriated by powerful individuals