Delta Opens Lands & Surveys ICT Centre in Asaba

Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba

Delta State Deputy Governor, Mr Kingsley Otuaro, has urged the people of the state o take advantage of the eased process of acquiring the Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) to secure ownership of their property at the present affordable rate.

Otuaro, who made the call during the commissioning of the ICT Centre, Ministry of Lands and Surveys at Asaba, at the weekend, said that the initiative would provide an “inclusive data base by completely digitalising the manual Certificate of Occupancy and all land documentation”.

He noted that the ICT Centre was in line with the SMART development agenda of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as it pertains to the administration’s plan of Urban Renewal Through Transformed Environment.

Through the ‘Fast-Track 90’ scheme the process of acquisition of Certificate of Occupancy the hitherto tedious machinery for acquiring the landed property document, which took months or even years to secure, has been simplified, digitalized and more transparent, he said.

Otuaro further said that with the government’s decision to transform all manual C of O to electronic versions, the ICT centre run by Queensbridge Capital Investment Limited would not only service the Ministry of Lands and Survey but ease the cumbersome process of securing C-of-O generally.

The scheme is expected to eliminate fraudulent practices of speculators, practice by land grabbers, estate agents, surveyors and others, he further stated, adding that the ICT would also help shore up the state’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) base.

According to Otuaro, “Government generous reduction of the price charged for the C of O is expected to attract property owners in droves to secure legitimacy on their property, moreover this facility will greatly aid easy verification of existing land allocations in the state, thereby decimating the activities of land racketers.”

Earlier in his remark, the Delta State Commissioner for Lands, Surveys, and Urban Development, Chief Dan Okenyi, said that the commissioning of the ICT Centre has invalidated all former C-of-O obtained before the flag-off of the ‘Fast-Track 90’.

The new technology would help to chun out C-of-O quickly, he assured and expressed that Queensbridge Capital Investment, which initiated the project at no cost to government, would through the centre make the job easier, faster and more efficient.

Also speaking, the Managing Director of Queensbridge Capital Investment, Mr. Chuks Iku, said that the ICT centre would fast-track the issuance of Certificate of Occupancy to land owners in the state as well as as make forgery difficult.

The Fastrack Desk has been digilized while all former documents made in the Ministry of Lands and Surveys will be digitalized in 60 days, Iku said.

Highpoint of the occasion was the official commissioning as well as inspection of the facilities at the ICT Centre by the Delta State Deputy Governor, Barr. Kingsley Otuaro, accompanied by the Commissioner for Lands, Surveys and Urban Development as well as other top government functionaries.