Today can confidently report that Rent Control Department of Ghana, an agency under the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing, is gradually collapsing slowly under the watch of President John Dramani Mahama.
The State-owned department, Today gathered, is dying because government through the ministry of finance and economic planning since 2013, has failed to release budgetary allocation to all the forty-five (45) offices of the department nationwide for investment, procurement and smooth running of its operations.
Although the Mahama-led National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration in its 2012 budget statement allocated GH�600.000 to the department, a deep throat source at the corridors of power hinted this paper that the ministry of finance and economic planning failed to make available full budgetary allocation to the department.
This situation, according to some workers who spoke to Today on condition of anonymity, was making things difficult for the department which is responsible for resolving disputes between tenants and landlords.
The Rent Control Act of 1963 and Rent Control Act of 1986 were passed by Parliament to protect tenants from arbitrary increases in rent and frequent evictions by their landlords.
But due to the inability of the finance ministry to release the budgetary allocation for both 2013 and 2014, the department has become handicapped in discharging its core mandate.
Today�s investigations further revealed that the Rent Control Department is currently saddled with logistics challenges.
Interestingly, the department�s headquarters in Accra near Tema Lorry Station only has four rent offices.
In an interview with some journalists in Accra recently, Chief Rent Controller, Mr. Addo Soin Dombo, lamented that the department�s subventions for 2013 had not been released by government.
And this according to him has made it practically impossible for them to pay contractors hired to work for the department.
The visibly worried chief rent controller noted that some of the contractors have threatened to institute legal action against the department.
To this end he appealed to government to release the subvention to the department to enable it to pay the contractors.
According to Mr. Dombo, for the past two years the only pick-up vehicle of the department had been broken down, making it extremely difficult for management of the department to monitor the activities of its staff.
Although in the wake of these challenges facing the department, Mr. Dombo disclosed his outfit has been able to settle 30,456 out of 64,456 cases it received from both landlords and tenants in 2013.
According to him, a total number of 15,345 cases were referred to the courts for redress, while 18,655 are still pending before the department.
He pointed out that in 2012 the department, in collaboration with some metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs,) was able to open new offices in nine districts.
The districts, he mentioned, included Akatsi, Kpando and Denu, in the Volta Region, Yendi and Bimbilla in the Northern region, Jirapa, Lawra and Wa in the Upper West region, and Weija in the Greater Accra region.
Mr. Dombo also said the department�s 45 offices nationwide, was woefully inadequate, adding,� in districts where they have no offices, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) is compelled to take up rent cases which is outside the commission�s mandate.
He asserted that plans are far advanced for the opening of an additional 25 new district Offices this year, but lamented that the Department is facing serious financial constraints in carrying out its mandate.
He appealed to the Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Alhaji Collins Dauda, and government to help the department with more pick-up vehicles to enhance its work in order to achieve the desire target of the department.
Mr. Dombo also entreated the ministry of finance and economic planning to speed up works on the processing of emoluments for the recruitment of new staff to replace retired staff.
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