Private hostels are not exempt from rent control laws – Frederick Opoku

The Acting Rent Commissioner, Frederick Opoku, has maintained that the Rent Control Department has jurisdiction over private buildings and premises across Ghana, except state-owned facilities.

Bishop Owusu-Bi had challenged the department’s authority to regulate hostel operators, arguing that even though the Rent Control Department had jurisdiction over their businesses, the approach by Mr Opoku is unacceptable.

Mr Opoku said the authority was derived from Section 1 of the Rent Control Act, 1963 (Act 220), which mandates the department to regulate rent-related matters involving private premises.