• ‘Vendetta by politicians, mix-up of documents on increase’

Despite improvements in the processes for acquiring land and documenting titles in states across the country, as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), there are still issues around revocations without following due process and mixing up of documents, among other infractions by the authorities for various reasons.

Almost all the states in Nigeria and the FCT have in the last two decades established their Geographic Information Systems (GIS) units.

That of the FCT, known as the Abuja Geographic Information System (AGIS), was established in 2003 to computerise the land registry and cadastral maps of the country’s capital and its adjoining towns and cities.

The FCT consists of six different area councils, namely, Abaji, Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje and Kwali and these cover a total land area of approximately 7,290 km.

The computerised process of documentation, which the system introduced, was a revolution against past practices where files containing land titles are mixed up, misplaced or completely lost, leading to disputes, litigations and sometimes violent conflicts.

With the GIS, it is expected that the records of every plot of allocated lands are neatly stored and kept intact to avoid dubious allocations, political interference and general acrimony.

Investigations by our correspondents have, however, revealed that disputes arising from the past methods have not been substantially removed as cases of mix-up of documents, swapping of numbers and loss of titles are still rampant.

Added to these is the undue interference by politicians who take advantage of such mix-ups to either revoke or deny their opponents allocated titles.

Our correspondents found out that some governors are taking advantage of their control of the system’s offices to get back at their opponents by revoking titles duly acquired and reallocating same to their associates.

 

Good move, but… 

Stakeholders in the property business in Abuja believe that AGIS’ efforts to digitise land records and implement transparent processes have significantly reduced corruption and land disputes in the country’s capital.

Recently, however, there have been allegations that the FCT minister, Nyesom Wike, has been revoking people’s lands and re-allocating them to his cronies.

The minister has openly denied the allegations, asking those with verifiable proof of such practices to come forward with them.

Mr Kunle Ogunyemi, a businessman, observed that before the establishment of AGIS, cases of multiple allocations leading to protracted court cases had been the major scenario causing unrest in the property sector in the country’s capital.

He said the establishment of the AGIS in 2003 started addressing some of the challenges, stressing that, “It will be difficult to have cases of double allocations in Abuja now because with the AGIS we now have reliable and up-to-date data concerning land already allocated.”

He explained that even information on unallocated lands in a newly created district could be obtained from the AGIS.

A land agent, Mallam Nasiru Sufi, told our correspondent that the era when land files were being misplaced, destroyed or tampered with had gone in the FCT.

He said, “All the genuine plots of land allocated within FCT are now computerised. The era where even a messenger in the land office could alter land files has gone. No one can do that now, except if it involved the top directors.’’

A director at the AGIS who craved anonymity because he was not permitted to talk to the press said it would be very difficult for the data within their agency to be manipulated.

He said, “The way our technology works, it would be difficult to tamper with it. This is because the data are not in a single domain. If you tamper with it in one archive, it will show at the other end, and even the identity of the person or office that is attempting to tamper with it will show. So, all these things you people are saying are difficult to do.’’

He, however, said that the only way some things could be done is to first revoke the land, which only the minister has the power to do.

He said, “Once the land is revoked, a communication will be sent to the AGIS and that particular information would be reflected until that plot of land is re-allocated. Once it is re-allocated and necessary documentation is done by the new owner, the data will reflect the new owner of such plot.’’

 

Kano

The Kano State Government recently issued a directive to landowners in the state to renew their land titles, a development that ignited fresh concerns.

The order for recertification has not gone down well with many citizens and land owners who have raised concerns about the government’s real intentions.

The Commissioner for Land and Physical Planning, Malam Abubakar Umar, on December 18, gave land owners up to January 31 to recertify their land papers at the Kano Geographic Information Systems (KANGIS) office or face revocation. The deadline was later extended by another two months after the expiration of the first.

Those who spoke with our correspondent expressed obvious concerns, saying they view the development with suspicion.

They said they had reasons to believe the move is aimed at achieving a hidden political agenda. Some, however, said it might be a way of generating more revenue to the state.

A land owner in Badawa layout of Nassarawa Local Government Area, who gave his name as Salisu, revealed that though he newly got his C of O, he was still asked to go for recertification. He also revealed that he was served with a demand notice of N800,000 as ground rent by the ministry.

“The issue here is that people are not aware of the operating land use act, and the authorities are very reluctant in enforcing the mandate of the agencies under it, especially on land use, and that is why every move made by the government is being perceived as political. I was part of those people, but when I dug further, I found out that the authorities are just doing their job,” he said.

Habibu Malam, who has three plots along Bayero University, Kano (BUK) Road said he was scared.

“I am the fourth person who bought the lands. The original owner died long ago and his children secured C of O for the plots before they sold them. I also bought them much later. I didn’t do change of ownership, we only signed agreement,” he said.

Weekend Trust reports that even before he won the 2023 gubernatorial election, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf had vowed that he would reclaim all the plots allocated “illegally” by the government of Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.

And soon after he took over, many lands were reclaimed. For instance, the lands located between the Kano State Polytechnic and Aminu Kano College of Islamic and Legal Studies were taken back by the new administration.

The revocation of the land was announced by the Commissioner for Lands and Physical Planning, Abduljabbar Umar, who stated that the governor was empowered by section 28 of the Land Use Act, cap 15 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, to take that decision.

He said the state government had taken over the alternative site, which was also issued to the institution at Badume in the Bichi Local Government Area by the immediate past government.

“I wish to recast the minds of the members of the public to when we came on board on May 29, 2023. His Excellency directed for development control activities to be kick-started over a lingering piece of land between the Kano State Polytechnic and Aminu School of Remedial Studies.

“I wish to remind members of the public that following necessary due process, it has been established and confirmed that the layout implemented over the piece of land was done illegally.

“I hereby, by the powers conferred upon the executive governor of Kano State by section 28 of the Land Use Act, cap 15 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, which powers are delegated to him portioned to the section 45 of the Act, I Alhaji Abduljabbar M. Umar, honourable commissioner, Ministry of Lands and Physical Planning, Kano State, do give you notice that the entire site under layout number TPNUPDA/366 has been reinstated to the Aminu Kano College of Islamic Studies,” he said.

In June 2023, residents of the newly carved out settlement at Salanta Layout, along Yahaya Gusau road in Kano metropolis, also cried out over the planned demolition by the state government.

Most of them said they got their comprehensive land titles from the authorities and wondered how their properties could be demolished by executive feat.

By the mandate establishing it, the KANGIS is the source and custodian of geospatial data in Kano State. Its core functions include facilitating computerisation of all analogue land record and registration processes in the Ministry of Land and Physical Planning, as well as generation, production and issuance of Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) for all applications.

It also coordinates the establishment and maintenance of a GIS backbone for use in land administration and any other aspect of governance in Kano State, among others.

Responding to the allegations of a hidden agenda, the public relations officer of the state’s Ministry for Land, Abubakar Dayyabu, stated that the directive by the Kano State Government to landowners in the state to renew their land title certificates was not aimed at generating revenue, contrary to the speculation bandied around.

Dayyabu said the recertification of C of O for all land titles was solely aimed at standardising, digitising land allocation and administration, migrating from manual system to a digital system of certification.

“The certificates would be placed on the KANGIS server, which can be accessed online and real time from wherever. You know it costs a lot of money to maintain a server. If the motivation was revenue generation, landowners would be asked to pay N50,000 or more,” he stated.

The public relations officer also dismissed political undertones in the exercise, but acknowledged that landowners are required to pay N10,000 for the recertification.

He explained that another advantage of the recertification exercise is that it would address or bring to an end, cases of land disputes, land grabbing, among other land related disputes and serve as collateral for landowners to collect bank loans.

He said over 2,000 landowners had presented their papers for recertification, even as the ministry conducts enumeration of plots in the state with residential and commercial land titles, which would help collate data on plots with genuine certificates. 

 

Kaduna

In Kaduna, it is believed that the system has not been devoid of abuse as past governments in the state have been accused of denying deserving citizens their titles due to political differences.

Recently, lands previously revoked by past administrations in the state, including two parcels in Kaduna city, were returned to the family of the late military head of state, General Sani Abacha.

The director-general of the Kaduna Geographic and Information Services (KADGIS), Dr Bashir Garba Ibrahim, personally delivered the documents to those allocated at Babban Saura area in Millennium City.

He said, “This initiative, directed by Governor Uba Sani, is to compensate communities whose lands were taken without due process.”

A landowner in Kaduna metropolis, who simply identified himself as Malam Mustapha, however, said it took him 10 years of waiting to have his land at Millennium City regularised by the KADGIS. 

Mustapha said he bought the land in 2016 but was told that he could not build on it until after regularisation. 

He said, “They told us to wait for the Right of Occupancy Individual (ROI) form to fill before we could build on the land. But do you know that I waited for about 10 years before I got the ROI form around December 2024?”

He expressed disappointment, saying the delay in issuing the form was a big problem for him as he missed opportunities to develop the land.

Another resident who did not want to be named because he is still processing his land papers at the agency, said the ROI form was supposed to be free, but some staff members were asking people to part with a token, claiming it was for their bosses in the office.

The director-general of the Kaduna Geographic Information Service said the state government had launched a new Compensation and Valuation System (CVS) software to leverage technology in improving land administration and eliminating compensation fraud by establishing a comprehensive database at the agency.

He explained that the software was intended to eliminate compensation fraud by creating a comprehensive database that utilises National Identity Numbers and Bank Verification Numbers while incorporating biometric data during initial data capture.

Dr Ibrahim said, “This software aims to promote transparency and improve operational efficiency at various stages of the compensation process. It is designed to enhance governance and accountability by modernising the processes associated with compensation linked to state-level projects.”

The director-general further said, “The software will accurately identify each parcel of land and link it to the relevant beneficiaries, thus streamlining the compensation process further.”

 

Plateau

Our correspondent gathered that the land certification process in Plateau State is still experiencing lots of hitches like analogue procedure (it is still not automated). 

The Plateau Geographical Information Services (PLAGIS) is still operating under the Ministry of Lands and Survey.

This is unlike other states that the agency is backed by law to operate as a stand-alone arm overseeing land issues and certification.

A land developer/agent in Jos, the state capital, Isaac Richard Alemoh, said they had been experiencing bureaucratic bottlenecks in the process of land certification, and that the process needed to be automated to make it faster.

He said the duration for processing documentation would take up to three months for Right of Ownership (R of O), which to him doesn’t make sense, adding that the cost of processing documents is too high.

“More importantly is that there are lots of inefficient staff in the Ministry of Lands who don’t really understand issues surrounding land administration. Another major issue is corruption because you need to bribe your way through at every stage before your file moves from one desk to another.

“Sometimes people don’t really want to go through all of those hiccups to process documents. That is why most of the lands in Plateau State are untitled. Last year, a real estate firm wanted to come in from Abuja and Lagos, but they needed titled land to avoid the issue of double selling of land and all that, but they could not get. You can hardly get two to three hectares of land in the state that are titled.

“This is also scaring away investors from the state because no investor wants to buy an untitled land. In Jos, the Plateau State capital, for instance, apart from places like Rayfield and Kwang that you can get titled land of between five to six plots, you will hardly see in other places,” he said.

He added that ideally, the lands are supposed to be titled so that the government can make revenue from it when the people go to pay for the yearly ground rent, but the people don’t go to process titles for their lands because the cost of pursuing the title is high, as well as other hitches.

Another land/property owner in the Filing Sukuwa area of Jos North, Mohammed Auwal, said he bought his land from the Plateau Investment and Property Company Limited (PIPC), but since then, they have been applying for certification/documentation but have not been able to get it from the Ministry of Lands and Survey.

Auwal explained that he bought some lands but has not been able to get documentation from the ministry because of several hitches and bottlenecks.

According to him, he has been going to the ministry since 2016 but could not get papers from the ministry. He, however, said he had developed one of the lands and packed in.

Auwal added that other people from areas like Ring Road, Zinaria and Azurfa had also complained of being unable to do documentation for their lands in the ministry.

Another resident of Jos, Ibrahim Mohammed, said he was able to get his Certificate of Occupancy during the regime of Simon Lalong but it was not easy.

He alleged that there had been issues of bribery and corruption in the ministry over the years as files were not treated without bribes.

The Commissioner for Lands, Survey and Town Planning in Plateau State, Peter Nyam Gai, said most of the problems of land documentation in the state were due to the abandonment of the vision of PLAGIS by the last administration.

But upon the coming of Governor Caleb Mutfwang, they have been addressing a lot of issues around land administration and documentation in the state, including reviewing of the licenses, upgrading the system like full digitization, where landowners will do all their applications online without having to come to the office or any manual involvement.

 

Bauchi

Last year, the Bauchi State Ministry of Land and Survey, through its agency, embarked on a rigorous exercise aimed at recertification of undeveloped lands and abandoned structures across the state, Weekend Trust gathered.

A total of 1,513 undeveloped plots and 53 abandoned structures were identified across five local government areas of Bauchi, Katagum, Ningi, Misau and Das during the exercise.

Following the development, the state government issued a six-month ultimatum notice to owners of the affected lands and structures to immediately develop them or they stand to be revoked.

The then Commissioner for Land and Survey, who is presently the Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Hajiya Amina Katagum, said a memo was presented to the council from the Ministry of Lands and Survey on the issues of identification of undeveloped plots and abandoned structures in five local governments in the state for a start.

“The state’s Executive Council has directed the ministry to publish the names of these allotees in six dailies of the country and also serve notices to the affected allotees to either within six months come up with developmental plan and start work immediately on their plots or the plots stand to be revoked.

“Again, we have given out notices on identified abandoned structures, and anyone going to continue development on them would have to go through the test of time. This would be done by the Ministry of Works because most of the abandoned structures have been left standing for a very long time,” she said.

This action taken by the state government had prompted some of the owners of the identified plots and structures to swing into action by developing their properties in the five affected local governments.

Most of the issues were resolved amicably between the government and owners of the affected properties, such as Filin Kobi and Railway plots, which hitherto housed the famous C & C market, all situated within Bauchi Municipal. While Filin Kobi was converted to a public school, that of Railway was fenced by the owner.

Sayyadi Ali Dahiru Bauchi, the director of Dahiru Bauchi Foundation, who has been using the Filin Kobi plot for the annual Maulid celebration, said the state government had approached the foundation over the property.

“We discussed at length and finally resolved that government should develop the land in public interest; and presently, a public school is being constructed there. So, contrary to speculations, the foundation has no issue with the Bauchi State Government over the said land. The issue was resolved amicably,” he said.

Efforts to get government’s comments on the matter were not successful as neither the commissioner nor the information officer was available when our correspondent visited their offices.

 

Borno

An organisation known as African Cities Research Consortium (ACRC) acknowledged that the establishment of the Borno Geographic Information Service (BOGIS) helped in integrating the informal settlement residents into land titling processes.

The lead researcher of the ACRC, Professor Kawu Monguno of the Department of Geography, University of Maiduguri, however, observed that a lot of nasty experiences happened in the past, where people lost their lands and houses to land grabbers due to lack of legal titles.

“More than two-third of people in Maiduguri live in informal settlements and do not have the titles they are supposed to have.

“If you are in Gwange, Shehuri North, Dala and part of Bulunkutu, you would know that those areas are not properly titled; that is why they need to secure the titles issued by the customary leaders. Improving on these already existing titles will help to secure them.

“This is why we are coming in as a team of experts to help push this agenda forward for people to take up the land titling and protect their property,” he said.

He also noted that Maiduguri is emerging from conflict and a lot of the population in Borno State now reside there—“nearly a third, even before the conflict.”

Efforts to speak to the executive secretary of the Borno State Information Geographic Service (BOGIS), Adam Bukar Bababe, were not successful as he could not be reached, even after asking our correspondent to write a formal letter, which was done.

 

Niger

In Niger State, although the Geographic Information System has reportedly expedited the application, processing and production of Certificates of Occupancy, there are observations that delays often arise due to failure by governors of the state to sign the certificates for applicants.

An applicant, Mustapha Yakubu, said he applied for his certificate five years ago during the previous administration of Abubakar Sani Bello but was yet to receive it. While confirming that the GIS process was smooth and efficient, he noted that the lack of a governor’s signature remains a major hurdle.

A real estate development expert who chose to remain anonymous, suggested that governors should delegate trusted officials to sign the certificates to prevent backlogs and ensure timely issuance for applicants.

“The GIS has actually revolutionised land administration in Niger State; it has made things easier, faster and more secure. It has helped bring order to land administration, especially in transactions. With just the file number and code number, you can easily conduct a search and find all relevant land documentation, which has been digitised for easy access. I don’t see any downside to the GIS.

“The challenge is that some people don’t like to pay the required fees. The process is quite flexible – you just need to complete some documentation and begin the process.

“The Ministry of Lands does its part by producing Certificates of Occupancy, but of course, the certificates must be signed by the governor. So, while many certificates may be ready, they remain unusable without the governor’s signature,” he said.

He added that cases of land confiscation often arise when property owners fail to pay the required fees.

“It is not entirely correct to say that the government forcibly takes lands from people. These situations usually occur when individuals who claim ownership of land – sometimes through inheritance —hold a Certificate of Occupancy but take no further steps to establish their ownership. This includes failing to pay the annual ground rent, which is a legal obligation for landowners.

“If you pay your annual ground rent, your ownership records are updated regularly. This is crucial because in cases where the government needs to acquire land for overriding public interest, it makes it easier to identify rightful owners and provide them with fair compensation.

“However, if ownership cannot be verified beyond just holding a Certificate of Occupancy, that is when issues arise and the government may reclaim the land,” the expert explained.

Efforts to reach the Commissioner for Land, Maurice Magaji, a lawyer, for comments were unsuccessful. Our correspondent visited the commissioner’s office but was informed that he was unavailable.

 

Lagos

Our correspondent reports that the Lagos State real estate industry has been awash with issues relating to sale of lands without the relevant allocation and approval from the state government.

The state government had to intervene in the dispute between a real estate company and a buyer over non allocation of land allegedly bought by the individual.

In January last year, the Lagos State Government launched the electronic Geographic Information System (e-GIS) platform, where residents can apply, search and verify land titles across the state online before purchase is made. 

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said the e-GIS platform digitised access on all matters pertaining to land in the state. 

Sanwo-Olu further explained that the e-GIS system had collated all data relating to lands across the state since the 19th century, together with their titles and the transaction details of those lands. 

However, the eGIS land title registration system in Lagos, while intended to streamline land ownership documentation, has been met with controversy due to concerns regarding potential corruption, lack of transparency and issues with data accuracy, leading to disputes over land ownership and challenges for property buyers trying to verify titles.

 

Why GIS

The immediate past president of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), Aliyu Wammako, said Geographical Information Agencies owned by government were primarily set up to ensure that records of land allocations are kept safe and not otherwise.

He said, “Geographical Information Systems are set up to ensure that records of every plot of allocated lands are stored and intact. Therefore, any other act that undermines this function has to be checkmated by the state governors or other relevant authorities.

“I believe it is a tool to checkmate racketeering and not to be used for it; so, if there is any case of such, that agency needs to be under close monitoring.”

The chief executive officer of Cipriani Limited, Segun Maku, noted that the states Geographical Information Systems were very crucial in data information and gathering; hence the need to ensure that those working there are not manipulating land data in favour of politicians or any government official.

“There had been complaints in the past against Geographical Information Systems, both in the Federal Capital Territory and states, of manipulating data. This needs to be checked, and it starts by checking the credibility of people working there and putting mechanisms in place that will hinder any alteration of records,” he said.

 

Contributions from Hussein Yahaya (Abuja), Ahmad Datti (Kano), Hassan Ibrahim (Bauchi), Mohammed Ibrahim Yaba (Kaduna), Dickson S. Adama (Jos) Abubakar Akote, (Minna), Peter Moses (Lagos) & Hamisu Matazu (Maiduguri)