Kogi state government said yesterday that it has targeted the generation of revenue to the tune of between N500 million and N1 billion annually from land and property related taxes following the digitalisation of land administration in the state.
The Director General, Kogi state Lands and Housing Services Bureau, Hajiya Maryam Ladi Ibrahim, who stated this while briefing newsmen in Lokoja on the activities of the bureau , said the establishment of
Kogi State Geographic Information System (KOGIS) had played significant roles in curbing sharp practices associated with the state’s land administration in the past.
She said: “In the past, you will see land hustlers around. But today, we have put that to rest. Like I said, if you do things right, and you are transparent in what you do, it will be difficult for some of those
sharp practices to take place.”
Speaking on the revenue generation, the Director General said: “We have had a lot of drive. under the Property Owners Express and if people key in, we will be targeting between 500m to 1 billion naira
revenue annually for the state government.”
“Very soon, this could be our crude oil. For the few months that we have being in operation, just on the GIS alone, about 20million naira has been generated.
“Aside the ground rents and other charges, we have raked in between N300 million and N400 million or thereabout and these go directly into the internal revenue account of the government”, she said.
She noted that the digitalisation of land administration would bring a lot of benefits for people of the state, especially in the areas of security and road networks.
“You can’t really get the road network fixed. We need to name the road; the streets and you need to know who has built these houses.
“If they are security issues, the security agents should be able to trace them out. In as much as it is key for revenue generations, the state government is also concerned about the security aspects”, she said.
While lamenting that most property owners in the state built without the required government approvals and adherence to due process, the Director General, revealed that the state government has given a window of opportunity to evaluate and process for approval building plan, Certificate of Occupancy(C of O).
