In a bid to clamp down on the activities of land grabbers in Ekiti State, the state’s House of Assembly has prescribed a five-year jail term and other punishments for offenders of the anti-land grabbing law in the state.
The House made this known during its plenary on Thursday at the Assembly Complex in Ado-Ekiti, the capital of the state, where it passed the Ekiti State Property Protection (Anti-Land Grabbing) (Second Amendment) Bill, 2024, into law.
The bill, sponsored by Honourable Ebenezer Oluwayomi Ayorinde (Ido/Osi II) and co-sponsored by Honourable Lateef Oluwole Akanle (Ekiti East II), was thoroughly considered at the Committee of the Whole House before it was read the third time and became law.
According to the bill, “all payments made in respect of family land or property shall only be paid into a designated family bank account.
“It shall be unlawful for holders of private or community land to alienate any part thereof by transfer of ownership, lease or otherwise without the registration of the approved layout and obtaining [a] Certificate of Value from a Registered Estate Surveyor and Valuer.
“The bill prescribed five (5) years’ imprisonment and 10% of the value of the land in question as [a] fine for offenders while also empowering the victim to recover the purchase price for the land, as the case may be.”
Commenting on the bill and the contributions from members, the Speaker of the House, Right Honourable Adeoye Stephen Aribasoye, said, “The House is fully committed to ensuring that the law permanently addresses the menace of land-grabbing in the state and that the law would empower the government to tackle the activities of land grabbers popularly called ‘Omo-Onile’, quack estate surveyors and estate agents.
“This bill is also important to protect investors from fraudulent land transactions and to maintain law and order. This, by implication, will encourage the verification of legal claims through litigation rather than resorting to violence.”
The Speaker thereafter directed the House Committee on Information to sensitise the people on the provisions of the law and engage relevant stakeholders in the state.
A motion calling on the state government to enhance the utilisation of the Ekiti State Independent Electoral Commission (EKSIEC) for improved governance and democratic participation was also thoroughly considered at the plenary.
The motion was moved by Honourable Ayodeji Adegbite, Ado Constituency I, and seconded by Honourable Babatunde Oke, Ikere Constituency II.
According to the mover of the motion, there are various ways EKSIEC could be effectively utilised throughout the three-year election cycle to enhance governance and democratic participation in the state.
“EKSIEC may enhance its delineation and electoral mapping capabilities to ensure fair representation and effective electoral processes; by updating electoral boundaries, conducting demographic analyses and implementing advanced mapping technologies in order to create more polling units, wards and constituencies for INEC to adopt.”
The seconder of the motion, Honourable Babatunde Oke, stated that local government polls are a vital component of Nigeria’s democratic fabric, yet they often suffer from low voter turnout and lack of engagement. Enhancing participation in these polls is crucial for ensuring that local governance is truly representative and effective and this could be achieved by empowering EKSIEC to increase voter education and awareness.
“One of the key challenges in local government polls is a lack of awareness about their importance. Voter education campaigns are essential to inform citizens about the role of local governments, the impact of their votes, and the details of the electoral process. EKSIEC must start the campaign early, not [a] few months to elections, through community meetings, social media, local radio, and collaboration with civil society organisations.” (Sun)