Borno Geographic Information System (BOGIS) has called on land owners within the urban and rural areas of the State capital and Local Government headquarters across the State to heed to advice and call by the agency to register their property, upgrade land titles and ensure proper documentation of the land before they lose their property.
The agency also warned residents of Maiduguri suburb to desist from encroaching on Government Reservation Areas (GRAs), complaining that it is their ancestral homes which has been reserved by government for future or further developments by law, especially, those occupying government’s land without any title or proof of ownership as required by the Gazetted Land Use Ordinance of 1954 and Land Use Act of 1978.
The Executive Secretary of BOGIS, Engineer Adam Bababe who stated this on Saturday at a press conference with journalists held at the Conference Hall of the BOGIS, said, no traditional settlement in Maiduguri town has title.
“It is only assumed that such land has been developed since 1978 where titles are only given to land owners with evidence from the Bulamas (Wards Heads) and recently statutory certificates from Local Government Councils.
“We have challenges. There is no work without challenges. The agency was a Ministry with malfunctional activities and unpatriotic staff that bastardized the land administration system leading to high land racketeering at the expense of the government where government was losing lot of money to staff pockets.
“When we came on board and met the system has been connected with complications of multiple land ownerships, lack of documentation, duping and non remittance of revenues generated. We decided to clean the system and introduced a standard and centralized system of operations and land administration.
“Where the sanitizing process revealed that in 2017, revenue generated was N14.6 million, in 2018 the revenue stood at N19.6 million while in 2019 it was N68.88 million, in 2020 December January it was N436 million and in 2021 it stood at N1.42 billion by December. For 2022, our target is yet to be ascertained as it will be based on the 2022 which is just an budget estimate,” Bababe said.
He also denied BOGIS ever having N2.6 billion as budget proposal mentioned in the 2022 Appropriation Bill and compensation rate is N1 billion not otherwise as wrongly mentioned by some media over the issue of township roads and bridges construction of dual carriage ways and not flyover.
On issue of demolition in Maiduguri town, he added, “wherever you see BOGIS in these areas considered old settlements, it is because of rights of way issues which are being carried out. BOGIS is present there in new lay outs but not in local or traditional locations or settlements within the town”.
“Sense of holder or ownership has been given to them. Small grant us even expected to to given to the residents rather to encourage them come forward to the office (BOGIS) to register their land and landed property for their titles according to standard and easy future references and documentation.
“We plan to do that soon. To give titles to the traditional land owners or developers from 1978 to date in old settlement areas. The governor by law is obligated to issue tutl stop them according to the Land Use Act of 1978 in the basis that it is obligated to have been developed since 1980.
” If not developed, people are entitled to have half of a hectare of farmland, it is also 5000 hectares and if it exceeds , such excesses are extinguished from the owner by th Government where titles will be given to owners with evidence and certificates issued,” Bababe said.
The Executive Secretary further said that the agency is working assiduously to renew it update Maiduguri City Physical Master Plan soon to meet up with the physical development and population growth urbanization in line with the national and international standard as the law provides .
He said ” the master plan of Maiduguri city is being reviewed every 5 years.plans are underway to review the present master plan to incorporate urban renewal for rebuilding of some old settlements including road networks,hospitals, schools, housing estates, Industries, markets, ,shops, etc to modernize the areas”.
“That is why for now, government has no plan to create additional lay out plans or roll out new lay outs for the people . Until those allocated in the past are either built or developed hence we can not continue to be creating new lay outs of plots while the old ones created are unbuilt. I therefore call in those undeveloped land owners to develop their property according to the law”, Bababe said.
According to him, “BOGIS is reducing rent in ground rent in order to bring sanity into the land use and administration processes. This is why the Urban Physical Planning and Development Board is a unit under ministry/agency. Because it is the agency that design, allocate and approve land development. It also supervise or monitor physical structures development, planning, compensation and design in collaboration with the Physical Urban Development Board “.
“We also review and renew every 5 years ground rents. Last renew it in 2020 and next will be in 2024. However, people have been complying and impressively paying their ground rents but not as expected . There ar still some delays here and there.
“On issue of land or church or mosque demolition by BOGIS. We do our job according to the law and carry out demolition exercise after due process and protocol have be n observed or applied on violated land or structures. And most of these properties are allocated as residential areas or for residential purpose.
“But later changed between the buyer and seller without proper documentation at the ministry in the past and now BOGIS. The property could have been sold and passed through many hands without records or opening of file and payment of grants as well with change in purpose of the land.
“Lands are acquired for residential or commerical purpose and later sold to an individual or organization who later changed th purpose to either religious or industrial or commercial purpose without legal and proper documentation and certificate. Most of them do claim bought land from the Bulama (Ward Head) who has no land.
“It is inky the government that owns the land according to the constitution or law and land is in custody of the governor in state capitals or urban areas who issues C of O while LGC Chairman in local government areas issues statutory allocation not Bulama or Lawan (Ward or Village Head),” Adam said
The Executive Secretary noted also that ,” if you see BOGIS demolishing any structure, such structure whether developed /built or not has violated the land use act and government policy or law.”
” We only enforce the law on behalf of the Government after following all the necessary due process and legal requirements including serving of notice, grace, consultations, dialogue and other steps.
” We don’t just embark on any exercise just like that. We are also human beings and have our spiritual inclinations. We are not out to fight anybody or organization but work within the our schedule of responsibility as government agency to ensure compliance and that is all,” Bababe said.
