Land Use Charge: Lagos Says Tax Increase Not for 2019 Election

• To provide 2000 roads, renovate classrooms, others

Martins Ifijeh

The Lagos State government, as part of efforts to address complaints by land and property owners in the state over the Amendment in Land Use Charge, has noted that the tax increase is not geared towards raising money for the 2019 general election, as being insinuated by some Lagosians.

It said the increase was to ensure that multiple developmental works going on across the state were adequately financed and delivered.

Stating this in a chat with journalists yesterday, the state Commissioner for Information, Kehinde Bamigbetan said the plan of the Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode is to improve the lived of the residents through delivery of world class infrastructures, adding that this would require financial investments.

“When we came on board, we realised that we will be needing at least N180 billion to make our class rooms world class. Last year alone we put in N20 billion, which is just a scratch of what is really needed. We want to make sure we provide these facilities for our children.

“Same thing goes for roads. Lagos has 5,000 roads, but last year we delivered 114. This year, we are already working on 181. With the resources we have, there is no way we can deliver 2,000 roads before we leave office in few months time.

“And for us to deliver 2,000 roads, we have decided to establish four interlocking block production sites in four different parts of Lagos. Each site will be producing 1000 interlocking blocks per day. As we speak now the equipments are on their way to Lagos. And all these require money,” he added.

He said while politicians look for quick fix to solutions, state often think of long term solutions, adding that Ambode has decided to provide long term solutions to several infrastructural issues in the state.
“For instance Lagosians have been taking risks with their water. We have decided to overhaul what we have and provide a safer model. And we have started doing that.”

He said he believed Lagosians were very aware of the massive infrastructure presently going on in the state, hence their decision to support the system. He called on other residents, especially property owners in the state to support the efforts of government.

In a stakeholder’s dialogue forum organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry to discuss the recent amendments to the LUC Friday, some residents of the state called on the state government to suspend the Law, adding that it was ill-timed, and that Lagosians were already paying more than enough.

One of the respondents, President, LCCI, Mr. Babatunde Ruwase, noted that the economic situation in the country did not put enough resources in the hands of taxpayers to accommodate additional taxes, suggesting that the government should get more property owners into its tax net as it had been established that about 700,000 properties existed in the state on which the LUC ought to be charged, but that only about 300,000 property owners were currently on the database of the state government.

“We request that the implementation of the new LUC law be put on hold because of the stakeholders’ complaints, while the grey areas are sorted out. Also, some key provisions in the law need to be normalised in the interest of fairness, equity and natural justice,” Ruwase said.