Ghana needs TRUST laws to stop the theft of its Children’s Inheritance
Imagine this: a twenty-five-year-old in Labadi watches strangers build mansions on land his ancestors preserved. His community’s custodians disposed of it. The proceeds bought cars, funded extravagance and disappeared. He cannot afford a plot. His children will inherit stories about land that should have secured their future. Elsewhere, galamsey swallows a girl’s family farm and poisons their…
In the heart of Labadi, a young man witnesses strangers erecting opulent homes on land his forebears once safeguarded. This land, entrusted to his community, was plundered, its proceeds squandered on extravagance, leaving him destitute and his children bereft of their ancestral inheritance. In another part of the nation, a girl's family farm is reduced to ruin by galamsey, the precious water they depend on poisoned, and their gold stolen.
The cycle of dispossession continues, robbing a generation of their future. To halt this trend, a TRUST is needed - a legal construct where trustees manage property for the benefit of beneficiaries, or for a recognised public purpose. Trustees are bound by rules that forbid personal gain and require rigorous accountings. In other countries, such TRUSTS have proven effective.
Britain's National Trust preserves designated land in perpetuity while allowing compatible uses. Alaska's Permanent Fund invests mineral revenues, constitutionally protected, to support future generations. Norway channels petroleum income into a sovereign wealth fund, with spending guided by prudent investment returns. These examples illustrate the power of disciplined stewardship over natural resources.
Ghana's Constitution already acknowledges fiduciary duties over communal land and trusteeship over public land and minerals. These obligations must now be enforced. Lawyers who knowingly facilitate the squandering of communal assets not only betray their profession, but also enable one generation to inherit the losses of the next.
Parliament must enact a Land and Natural Resources Trusteeship Act. This legislation should mandate community TRUSTS for significant customary land transactions, require protected accounts, independent audits, and the representation of beneficiaries. Moreover, it must provide enforceable remedies for breaches of fiduciary duty. The law should safeguard land that must remain untouched, and ensure that proceeds from lawful development benefit the community.
Mining companies must fund community benefits and secure rehabilitation obligations. Illegal mining should be vigorously prosecuted. Transactions must be published and conflicts of interest disclosed. Beneficiaries must be empowered to challenge abuse, and dishonest trustees must be removed, and any misappropriated assets recovered.
Without robust enforcement, a TRUST remains a hollow promise. When a chief's reign ends, a government departs, or a family head passes away, the injustices endured continue to echo.
Written by urgent.news from MyJoyOnline Ghana's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
