Edo tackles land grabbing, eases C of O

For a long time, real estate developers in Edo State had faced an uphill task in getting land titles and developing their plots, but the traditional institution and the governor have now collaborated to ease the process. Developers were confronted with several challenges such as getting genuine land because there were cases of land racketeers […]

For a long time, real estate developers in Edo State had faced an uphill task in getting land titles and developing their plots, but the traditional institution and the governor have now collaborated to ease the process.

Developers were confronted with several challenges such as getting genuine land because there were cases of land racketeers selling a plot to several persons and delay in getting Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) and Community Development Associations (CDAs) collecting multiple fees from the developers.

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Daily Trust findings revealed that it took between two to three years to process a land title at not less than N1 Smillion. The CDAs too forced developers to pay between N100,000 and N300,000 before laying a building foundation, and any developer who refused to pay had his land confiscated and sold out.

Also, as a building project progressed to lintel level, the developer would be compelled to pay before completing the structure, and upon completion, the developer would pay another money before roofing; as well as when sinking a borehole.

Our correspondent learnt that the extortion from the CDAs forced many people to abandon their construction sites in Benin City.

However, the situation changed in 2017 when the Oba of Benin, Ewuare II, banned the activities of CDAs and Gov Godwin Obaseki followed suit by criminalising their activities.

Gov Obaseki said the issue of CDAs had to be taken seriously and that order must be restored in the land administration system if the state was to push forward and attract investors, adding that his administration had finalised a bill which would be sent to the House of Assembly to criminalise the activities of CDAs.

Shortly after that, the governor established the Edo State Geographical Information Service (EdoGIS); migrating from manual registration of land to digital registration to reduce the burden of applicants who paid heavily and had to wait for several years before getting C of O.

Also, recently the governor signed into law a bill to repeal the Edo State Private Property Protection Law 2017 and reenacted the Edo State Private Property Protection Law 2021.

Speaking on the amended law, Gov Obaseki said it was meant to tackle the CDAs and splinter groups like Okaighele and other land grabbers.

He said, “We have been waiting for this law to reconstitute the committee on the protection of private property. We are setting up a special court to swiftly try offenders, and whoever is found guilty would face the consequences.”

He explained that the state would sanitise the environment, warning that developers who violated the state’s extant town planning laws and regulations would be sanctioned.

He said some developers had continued the unwholesome practice of converting residential premises to commercial use without applying and obtaining the necessary change of use permit from the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development.

Following the developments from the state government and the traditional institution, officials at the newly established EdoGIS said the process of getting land titles had become simple; with the fees drastically reduced.

The Managing Director of EdoGIS, Francis Evbuomwan, told Daily Trust that unlike before, the price of land title was 80 per cent cheaper, and that the land itself was protected by the state government.

Mr Evbuomwan explained that, “The C of O is priced based on land size, use and location. For a plot of land which is about 900 square metres you can get C of O between N70,000 and N85,000. If it is half plot you can get it between N60,000 and N72,000.

“The government, because of past experience, where a plot of land was sold to five persons, has strengthened the security of land and title by signing into law the Edo State Private Property Protection Law 2021.”

Also speaking, the Executive Chairman of the Edo Property Development Agency (EPDA), Isoken Omo, said the real estate sector had been restructured to make it conducive for business, explaining that the restructuring had given developers confidence to invest in the state knowing that land titles were now genuine.

She added that the restructuring would fast-track the implementation of the city’s master plan so that residential areas would maintain their status, while those for industrial and commercial would be demarcated and infrastructure provided.

A developer, Dirisu Fatai, said the biggest challenge the real estate sector faced in the state was getting C of O, but that the issue had been addressed by the state government.

Mr Fatai said, “The state government has actually made C of O easy in the state. Once it finds out that a plot is genuine and you submit the right documents, you get the C of O with ease.”

On his part, a resident of Benin, Mr John Igbinoba, said many people had their lands sold out to other people because they could not afford to get titles for their lands.

Mr Igbinoba explained that, “Many people suffered in the hands of CDAs and government officials who extorted money from them in the name of processing C of O, and one may not even get it at the end of the day. But now, it is easy and affordable.”