Senate probes N6trn unpaid ground rent from property owners

In order to look into and reclaim the over six trillion naira accrued from property owners all throughout the nation failing to pay ground rent, the Senate established an ad hoc committee.

After a motion made under orders 41 and 51 of the Senate’s standing rules, Senator Yusuf Abubakar Yusuf (APC, Taraba Central) introduced the resolution.

He asserts that the Land Use Act grants the Federal Government ownership rights over its land in the states and the Federal Capital Territory.

According to him, the rights include the authority to direct and oversee town planning, physical development, and, indirectly, the imposition and collection of any tax, fee, or rate.

The lawmaker lamented that since 1992, over two million houses across the 36 states of the federation, including FCT have been built and allocated to beneficiaries by the federal government, yet the majority have no evidence of payment of ground rent on their properties.

He noted that with the current revenue challenges facing the country, there is a need for the government to look into other means of generating income than relying on oil revenue.

He further stated that investigation reveals that the failure of relevant authorities to recover these funds has led the country to losing over six trillion naira.

Lawmakers took turns to call on the federal government to come up with a computerized system where all allotted lands and properties, persons yet to pay and fashion out mode of recovering these funds.

The senate resolved to constitute an ad hoc committee to investigate the inability of the federal ministry of works and housing to investigate and recover these incomes for the government.

The upper chamber is to also investigate the circumstances that led to the inability of the land use act allocation committee, saddled with the responsibility of handing rent and license matter, to carry out their responsibility on the matter.

The red chamber also called for comprehensive data of federal government property that are sold to the public under the ministry of works and housing across the country.

The Senate therefore set up the committee and members include the following;

Adamu Aliero (PDP, Kebbi Central )

Sani Musa (APC, Niger East)

Sam Egwu (PDP, Ebonyi North)

Smart Adeyemi (APC, Kogi West )

Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central )

Betty Apiafi (PDP, Rivers West)

Yusuf Abubarkar Yusuf (APC, Taraba Central)

The committee was given one month to report back to plenary.