PROTOCOL
Today marks my second important function in the Ministry of
Lands, Survey and Town Planning as it pertains to our determination to
addressing all issues that hinder effective Land Administration in the State,
since our assumption of office.
In my address during the commissioning of the Plateau Land
Administration and Geographic Information System (PLAGIS) on the 10th June
2016, I informed the citizens of Plateau State that our approach to having an
effective and efficient Land Administration will be anchored on best practices,
that are globally acclaimed to address and provide solutions, to all the
underlying causes of our under – development which are hinged on bad land
administrative processes and practices.
The Digitization of
Land Administration and the reduction of the cumbersome process through which
titles are secured with the Geographic Information System, is just one step up
the ladder. The second step is the involvement of all critical stakeholders to
ensure that the system works for the good of the people of Plateau. This
meeting is therefore crucial to us as a government, seeing that it will avail
us the opportunity to collectively identify the hiccups that have characterised
past practices, which today we are poised to address collectively.
Let me take the liberty to remind all stakeholders here
gathered that besides improving on our revenue generation, the Plateau
Geographic Information System will guarantee the accuracy and legality of
registered interest in land, with the sophistry of its information data management,
thereby reducing to the barest minimum litigations associated with rival
interest in land. The other potential of the Geographic Information System are
in the areas of security mapping, precision photography and remote sensing for
mineral resources exploration, agricultural and tourism development planning.
As a people oriented Government, our commitment to
addressing as much as is humanly possible the challenges faced by our citizens
in all sectors remain unflinching. This is why the several concerns raised by
the Hon. Commissioner of Lands, Survey and Town Planning, with respect to the
seeming apathy of the expected several thousands of applicants for titles,
remains a thing of concern that should be considered and appropriately tackled.
At the formal launch of PLAGIS in June 2016, it was my
understanding that 55,000 applicants of land titles had been kept on hold for
almost a decade. 4000 Applicants from the launch in June 2016 to date having
been processed, though commendable, is a far cry from the expectation of
Government, with the fast track land documentation technology in the PLAGIS,
that has made it one of the best in West Africa.
My appreciation of the reason advanced for the lack of
enthusiasm which stems largely from lack of confidence, on account of past
sharp practices, unnecessary bottlenecks, and the high cost of securing titles
in comparism to other neighbouring States, necessitated my marching others for
massive sensitization on the PLAGIS, training of personnel, as well as the
immediate approval of a 50% promotion waiver for applicants; this will run up
to the 1st of December, 2016. It is the intention of Government, that as many
applicants who access the quick service delivery potential of the PLAGIS and
the secured title documents that come out as a function of the new system, they
will themselves encourage others to as a matter of urgency key into the
worthwhile project.
I urge all of you here as Stake holders, to identify and
arrive at far reaching decisions, concerning all the likely encumbrances, that
will militate against our attainment of an effective Land Administration in the
State. The resolutions that would guarantee a hitch free system of land
Administration, will be implemented to the later within the purview of extant
laws.
Keep in mind as you deliberate, that the focus of Government
in establishing the PLAGIS and reviewing the moribund land administration system
in the State are;
1. Effective and
efficient land documentation in the State.
2. Guaranteeing
access to land titles for our citizens.
3. Eradication of
corrupt practices in Land Administration.
4. Reduction of
conflicts associated with rival claims over land.
5. Increased
Revenue Generation from land based taxes
6. Ensuring a
globally acceptable land administration practice in the State.
7. Ensuring a
planned environment from the distribution and allocation of land uses within
the State amongst others.
All these noble objectives together with other potentials
that the system provides for security and other economic purposes, we will
continue pursue relentlessly for the good of our people.
In conclusion, permit me to register my appreciation to the
array of personalities and corporate representation that make up the
composition of the Stakeholder in this meeting. Carrying all of you along in
this critical meeting falls in tandem with our Rescue Administration’s principle
of participatory governance; this I believe will no doubt guarantee the success
we have set out to achieve with the new system.
Once more, I thank you all for your attention and I here,
declare the Stake-holders meeting open, to the Glory of God and for the benefit
of our State.
Thank you and God bless Plateau State.
Rt. Hon. Simon Bako Lalong
Executive Governor
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