A Chieftain of the All Progressive Congress in Cross River State, Surv. Kalita Igbe Aruku, has advised Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade on ways where the state can generate more revenue through proper land registration and management.
He said that it was quite unfortunate that in the last seven years, Cross River State has lost billions of naira due to ineffective land management system in the state.
Igbe-Aruku, who is the Coordinator elect of the Young Surveyors Forum in Cross River State and the Assistant Secretary elect of the Nigerian Institute of Surveyors in Cross River State, disclosed this in a chat with newsmen in Calabar.
“When you buy a property, you are meant to development it, survey it, do your agreement from the person who sold the land to you and the next stage would be the land registration.
“That process has been ineffective in the last seven years and they have been no proper land management system in place.
“During the land registration, they are taxes that you pay, those taxes are meant to help the government raise her Internally Generated Revenue.
“These IGR is meant to help the government to pave your street, provide electricity and other utilities.
“We have people complaining that certain amenities have not been provided for them, whereas they have not paid their requisites taxes to government,” he said.
According to the APC Chieftain, all lands were supposed to be properly registered and a Certificate of Occupancy issued to the owner which will serve as a legal tender for right of ownership of any piece of land acquired.
He lamented that over 80 percent of properties that have been developed in Cross River State have not done their proper land registration with the government by way of failing to pay dues and getting their Certificate of Occupancy as it was supposed to be.
He advised the governor to give an executive order to the State Commissioner for Lands and the Survey General of the State to enforce the payment of these taxes with a view to help the state government generate more revenue into its coffers.
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