PUBLIC PROPERTY PROTECTION ACT - 1977 (SMCD 140)

• Section - 1 - Deliberate Dissipation, Loss Or Damage.

  • (1) Any person who intentionally dissipates public funds shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment not exceeding ten years without the option of a fine.
    
    (2) Any person who intentionally misapplies or causes loss of or damage to public property shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment not exceeding five years or to a fine not exceeding c10,000.00 or to both.

• Section - 2 - Loss, Etc. Caused By Carelessness, Gross Negligence Or Dishonesty.

  • Any person who by carelessness, gross negligence or dishonesty misapplies or causes the dissipation of or loss or damage to public property shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment not exceeding five years or to a fine not exceeding c5,00000 or to both.
    

• Section - 3 - Failure To Account For Public Property.

  • (1) Any person who without reasonable excuse fails to account for any public property which was under his control or entrusted to his care shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment not exceeding five years or to a fine not exceeding c5,000.00 or to both.
    
    (2) This section shall have effect without prejudice to the provisions of the Audit Service Decree, 1972 (N.R.C.D. 49) or of any other enactment relating to public property.

• Section - 4 - Using Public Property For Private Gain.

  • (1) Subject to subsection (2), any person who without lawful authority uses public property for private gain to himself or any other person, or in such manner as to obtain a private benefit for himself or any other person, shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding c5,000.00.
    
    (2) It shall be a defence for a person charged with an offence under subsection (1) to prove that he had lawful authority to use the public property in the manner in which he used it.

• Section - 5 - Obtaining Public Property By False Statements, Etc.

  • Any person who causes any public property to be given or paid to him or any other person by means of any statement or representation which he knows to be false or which he has no reason to believe to be true shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment not exceeding five years or to a fine not exceeding c5,000.00 or to both.
    

• Section - 6 - Recovery Of Public Property.

  • (1) Where the court convicts any person of an offence under this Decree the court shall make such orders as may be necessary for recovering the public property concerned, or for making good any loss of or damage to the public property concerned, and for this purpose the court may, upon such terms as it thinks fit:-
    
    (a) order the seizure and forfeiture to the Republic of any asset of the convicted person;
    
    (b) where the court is satisfied that any other person holds any asset on behalf of the convicted person, order the seizure and forfeiture to the Republic of that asset;
    
    (c) order any person to execute such instrument or do such act as may be necessary for enabling any asset situated outside Ghana to be vested in the Republic;
    
    (d) order the delivery to the court of any document of title relating to any asset forfeited to the Republic:
    
    (e) make such other orders as may be necessary in the circumstances of the case.
    
    (2) An order made under this section shall, unless the court in special circumstances otherwise directs, have effect from the date of the conviction.
    
    (3) Any person who-
    
    (a) fails without reasonable excuse (proof of which shall be upon him) to comply with any order of the court under this section; or
    
    (b) otherwise obstructs the carrying into effect of any order made under this section,
    
    shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment not exceeding ten years without the option of a fine.

• Section - 7 - Offences By Bodies Of Persons.

  • Where an offence under this Decree is committed by a body of persons,-
    
    (a) where the body of persons is a body corporate other than a partnership, every director or officer of that body corporate shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence; and
    
    (b) where the body of persons is a partnership, every partner shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence:
    
    Provided that no person shall be deemed to be guilty of an offence under this section if he proves that the act in respect of which he is charged was committed by some other person without his consent or connivance and that he exercised all such diligence to prevent the commission of that act as he ought to have exercised having regard to all the circumstances.

• Section - 8 - Interpretation.

  • In this Decree, unless the context otherwise requires-
    
    "local authority" means a Regional, District or Local Council or a management committee, but does not include a traditional council;
    
    "public property" includes money and any other property owned by or held in trust for the Republic, the property of any State enterprise, statutory corporation or local authority, and any other property specified by the Attorney-General by executive instrument to be public property for the purposes of this Decree;
    
    "State enterprise" includes an enterprise completely owned and operated by the State or jointly owned and operated by the State and any person, and an enterprise managed under the direction of an organ of Government.

• Section - 9 - Repeals.

  • The following enactments are hereby repealed:-
    
    Public Property (Protection) and Corrupt Practices (Prevention) Act, 1962 (Act 121).
    
    Public Property (Protection) and Corrupt Practices (Prevention) Act, 1962 (Amendment.) (No. 2) Decree, 1967 (N.L.C.D. 200).