The Kogi state government has warned against illegal acquisition of land and indiscriminate construction of houses without adhering to the regulations of the town planning board.
Director-General of the state’s bureau of land and urban development, Nazif Ochi, gave the warning Friday while embarking on a demolition of illegal structures at Bond Estate houses in Lokoja.
He said the exercise was to demolish all structures that constituted nuisance to water channels and blockage of access roads, stressing that the exercise would be extended to all parts of Lokoja and the three senatorial districts.
Ochi frowned upon the “illegal manner in which some people acquired lands in the state,” warned traditional rulers to desist from selling community lands that the government had paid compensations to the communities.
She said the exercise would also be extended to places like Zangon Daji, Otokiti , Ganaja and other parts of Lokoja where buildings were carried out indiscriminately without recourse to access roads.
“It is expected that before you commence building of a house, there is a need for those who bought land to visit the town planning board and the bureau for land to authenticate the plot of land for approval to ensure that the building meets all regulations.
“Unfortunately, the land at bond estate houses in Lokoja belongs to the state government and compensation has been paid to the community, but to our surprise the traditional rulers at Felele community sold parts of the land to individuals without recourse for roads which have been mapped out in the Master Plan of the estate,” she said.
