Green Tax Youth Africa Kicks Against State Assets Renaming

Nii Addo

 

The Executive Director of Green Tax Youth Africa, Mr. Nii Addo, has urged the Government and Parliament to discontinue the practice of renaming already established state assets, arguing that the exercise diverts attention and resources from Ghana’s urgent development needs.

In a media statement dated February 3, 2026, Mr. Addo said Ghana is currently facing serious economic and social challenges, including high unemployment, inadequate housing, pressure on transport systems, underfunded health facilities, environmental degradation, and the menace of illegal mining.

He said that at a time when these issues demand urgent policy action, national debate should not be centred on symbolic name changes of longstanding public institutions.

Mr. Addo’s comments come in the wake of renewed public discussions about proposals to rename Kotoka International Airport and other state-owned facilities.

According to him, Ghana’s post-independence history demonstrates that renaming public institutions has not translated into improved governance or service delivery. He cited the renaming of Jubilee House to Flagstaff House and back again, the transition from Omnibus Services Authority to Metro Mass Transit, and the rebranding of Ghana Airways into Ghana International Airlines, which later collapsed.

“Changing names has never created employment, reduced transport costs, improved healthcare delivery, or addressed housing deficits,” Mr. Addo stated, adding that such actions fail to tackle illegal mining, agricultural decline, or the rising cost of living.

He warned that renaming national assets without broad public consultation and historical consideration could deepen political divisions rather than promote national cohesion.

Mr. Addo stressed that state assets belong to the Republic of Ghana and not to successive administrations, noting that their names form part of the country’s historical record and institutional identity. Frequent changes, he said, create confusion, generate avoidable administrative costs, and send negative signals to investors and international partners.

He further raised concerns about the financial implications of renaming exercises, which he said involve expenses related to rebranding, signage replacement, documentation updates, legal processes, and public communication.

Calling on Parliament to prioritise development-focused legislation, Mr. Addo urged lawmakers to concentrate on revenue mobilisation, job creation, agricultural modernisation, health financing, infrastructure development, and environmental protection.

He suggested that governments seeking to honour national figures should do so by initiating new development projects and naming those facilities accordingly, rather than altering the names of existing institutions.

Mr. Addo recommended the adoption of a clear national policy or legislative framework to regulate the renaming of state assets, limiting such actions to situations backed by broad national consensus.

He concluded that Ghana’s core challenge lies in governance and economic transformation, not in the renaming of public institutions.

 

FROM David Afum, Kumasi

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