By Matthew Denis
In a bid to boost Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), the Kwara State government is exploring the area of land administration to increase accruing income to state coffers.
Speaking to Pilot Business in Ilorin on Friday, the Director- General of the state Bureau of Lands, Alhaji Ibrahim Salman said the government is looking at generating more income from land administration charges.
Towards this end, he explained that a ‘one stop shop’ has been established for the ease of doing business by clients.
“We have temporarily relocated inside the General Hospital, Ilorin as our main office in GRA is being renovated and redesigned.
“This is to enable our clients have a one-stop-shop for land administration from next year. There is going to be ICT interconnectivity between office of the Surveyor General , Urban Development and Town Planning and the Bureau of Lands.
” As we all know revenue from land is encouraged by the ease of doing business. As you submit your application you will have a timeline for it’s readiness, which we will meet up with.
” We are looking at efficiency in collection of land charges and the rent payable on land being used by individuals. It is common knowledge that land in the state is vested on the Governor and entrusted to citizens. And if anybody is allowed the use of that land he has an opportunity cost on the land to pay something to the government.”
The DG explained further that the state government is repackaging the master intervention scheme which is an amnesty to give access to small holders to have Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) for their properties.
“No bank will give you a loan facility without a C of O and we realised that the cost of it is intimidating to some people. To collect C of O on a plot of land which is about 500 square metres you will spend about N250,000, but government has been magnanimous to reduce that rate, including survey, town planning report, valuation report and every document that need to be submitted you only pay N95,500.
“This will also save you from other charges and land grabbers and acclaimed landowners. So we are looking towards this area to increase revenue to the state.
He, however, decried the low level of compliance from members of the public on land charges, adding that some people are unaware of the system.
He said, ” We need to further engage on more campaign as many people are not aware of the charges. They see it as tax and complain of double taxation but rather it is rent payable. When you rent house you pay rent and if you know you can’t sustain the value of that payment perhaps in GRA you need to relocate to where same house can be affordable to you at cheaper rate.”
On the Fate shopping complex constructed by the state government along Government Secondary School, Ilorin setback, Alhaji Salman noted that the structure haven’t been abandoned as rumoured.
He explained, ” We have given the documents to the various occupants (allottees) and some of them want to rent it out, others want to redesign it. The government didn’t spend money on it but it was the owners that contributed money to build it.”
