Ground Rent: ‘You’re Ignorant Of Land Use Act’, Wike’s Spokesman Berates FCT Senator Kingibe

Lere Olayinka, the senior special assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has berated the Senator representing FCT, Ireti Kingibe, for being ignorant of the law regarding the enforcement of Ground Rent payment by land owners.

Olayinka’s statement came in response to Senator Kingibe’s recent comments criticising the FCT Administration over the enforcement of Ground Rent payment by property owners in the nation’s capital city.

He described the FCT Senator’s position as “ridiculously illogical,” firmly stating that land allocation is conditional.

“Land allocation is not unconditional, there are conditions that must be met and one of them is annual payment of Ground Rent,” he stated.

The FCT minister’s spokesperson went further to characterise Kingibe’s criticism as “a further advertisement of her ignorance of the Land Use Act and penchant for seeking cheap political gains on every issue.”

“It is ridiculously embarrassing that a serving Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, whose duty is to make laws is ignorant of the provisions of Section 28, Subsections (a) and (b) of the Land Use Act.

“For the education of Senator Kingibe, Section 28, Subsections (a) and (b) of the Land Use Act provides that ‘The Government may revoke a Statutory Right of Occupancy on the ground of; (a) a breach of any of the provisions which a certificate of occupancy is by Section 10 deemed to contain; and (b) a breach of any term contained in the Certificate of Occupancy.’

“Now, is annual payment of Ground Rent not part of the terms contained in the Certificate of Occupancy? Or Senator Kingibe just chose to advertise her myopic attitude to anything Wike?

“She should rather have said that land owners in the FCT have rights to refuse to pay necessary bills stated in the Certificate of Occupancy issued to them, and that when they so do, the government should simply pick samba and tambourine, and sing their praises,'” he stated.

Olayinka further questioned how Senator Kingibe would handle widespread non-compliance if she were in charge of FCT Administration.

“Now, if land allottees refused to pay Ground Rent for 10 to 43 years, Senator Ireti Kingibe will just look away if she was the FCT Minister?” Olayinka stated.