Outspoken Southern Essex District Register of Deeds John O’Brien wants bank executives and attorneys general to visit his Salem registry as part of an ongoing campaign against the Mortgage Electronic Registration System (MERS).

O’Brien said in a statement this morning that he has "invited the CEOs of the nation’s largest banks" to the registry to see "first-hand the damage that these banks and the Mortgage Electronic Registration System has caused to thousands of Essex County homeowners’ chains of title."

Also included in the invitation are state attorneys general, who are currently working with banks on a settlement regarding mortgage lending practices, including the use of MERS.

Nationwide, more than 60 percent of mortgages are registered in the MERS system, which was founded by a group of large banks, in partnership with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, as an alternative to the traditional property records system.

After the deflation of the housing market and the flood of foreclosures that followed, MERS’ weaknesses were exposed, says O’Brien.

The chains of title to thousands of properties are confused and unintelligible, he said. False property information has been recorded in the land records.

"It’s as if a hurricane came through here," O’Brien told Banker & Tradesman this mornings. "I have over 30,000 documents on my conference room table, all of which have been signed by known robo-signers."

O’Brien said he sincerely hopes bank executives will take him up on his invitation.

"They really can’t settle until they really take a look at the damage they’ve caused," he said. "Talk to us before settling something…Maybe we can have a dialogue."

Representatives from Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office did not return calls seeking comment.