Mohammed Alhassan Damba, immediate past president of the Ghana Institute of Planners, has called for a systemic approach to addressing failures in urban governance, arguing that accountability should focus on institutional responsibility rather than individual officers alone.
Damba said weaknesses in Ghana’s urban management system were often wrongly attributed to frontline officers, while supervisory and political authorities who held ultimate responsibility were not held accountable.
“When the job is not done, we should not attack the officer because we are not responsible for supervising the officer,” he said on Asaase Radio’s The Forum programme.
He argued that decision-making in local governance operates within established institutional frameworks, where committees and senior officials can affirm or reverse administrative actions.
“You have to do them within the framework of the system established. So even if this officer takes a decision, the committee under the leadership of the chair can reverse or affirm it,” he said.
Damba said the broader issue was the failure of supervisory authorities, including Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), to fully exercise their responsibilities in ensuring compliance with planning regulations.
“I would want us to go back and see it as a systemic issue,” he said, adding that stronger leadership at the municipal level was essential for effective enforcement.
He said MMDCEs must be made aware of the scope of their responsibilities and held to higher standards of accountability to ensure that planning officers carry out their duties properly.
“Once we get MCEs to know that they have enormous responsibilities on their hands, then they would work hard towards ensuring that the officer does what they are supposed to do,” he said.
Damba also criticised what he described as unprofessional exercise of administrative power, including arbitrary transfers or punitive measures against officers without addressing underlying institutional failures.
He questioned how accountability could be enforced when senior officials themselves fail to comply with legal and procedural requirements.
“If the MCEs too are not performing or blatantly violating the law, how do we take action?” he asked.
He suggested that civil society could play a role in compelling institutions to act through legal action, but noted that enforcement challenges often persist even then.
The remarks come amid ongoing concerns about weak enforcement of urban planning regulations in Ghana, which experts say contributes to recurring flooding and uncontrolled development in major cities.
Asaase 99.5 Accra, Asaase 98.5 Kumasi, Asaase 100.3 Cape Coast, AsaasePa 107.3 (Accra)
Affiliates: Bawku FM 101.5, Bead FM 99.9 (Bimbilla), Mining City Radio 89.5 (Tarkwa), Nandom FM 101.9, Nyatefe Radio 94.5 (Dzodze), Sissala Radio 96.3 (Tumu), Somuaa FM 89.9 (Gushegu), Stone City 90.7 (Ho) and Wale FM 106.9 (Walewale)
Listen online: atlanticafricanews.com/, Sound Garden and TuneIn
Follow us:
X: @asaaseradio995, @Asaase985ksi, @asaase1003, asaasepa1073
Instagram: asaaseradio99.5, asaase985ksi, asaase100.3, asaasepa107.3
LinkedIn: company/asaaseradio995. TikTok: @asaaseradio99.5
Facebook: asaase99.5, asaase985ksi, Asaase100.3, AsaasePa107.3
YouTube: AsaaseRadioXtra
Join the conversation. Accra: call 020 000 9951/050 009 0121, WhatsApp 020 000 0995. Kumasi: call 059 415 7985 or call/WhatsApp 020 631 5260. Cape Coast: call/WhatsApp 059 388 2652.
#AsaaseRadio
#AsaasePa
#TheVoiceofOurLand
