The Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, has announced the revocation of all land titles in the state.
He directed property owners to go to the Zamfara State Geographic Information System (ZAGIS) for recertification of their respective titles with the new policy of granting electronic certificates.
The Governor made the announcement at the flag -off of the issuance of the electronic Certificates of Occupancy which will henceforth be done only by ZAGIS.
Matawalle explained that his administration decided on the e-C of O following the corrupt practices and shoddy deals that characterized the manual issuance of C of Os in the state.
“Land, being the most valuable resource, needs to be carefully guarded against abuse and misuse, noting that under the new system, all e-C of Os to be issued would be strictly based on the extant land use regulations,” he said.
The governor added that land certification initialization embraced by his administration is part of his government’s efforts to create a new, technology-driven economy for the 21st century.
“All problems associated with land transactions will be resolved with the use of modern technology as the recertification of all land titles will assist in the current fight against banditry and sundry crimes.” He said.
“Owners of all land titles would now have their records available in a secured database; and that the new e-C of Os would also make it easier for financial institutions to check the authenticity of certificates for those who choose to use them as collateral for bank loans.”
Matawalle urged fresh applicants for all types of land titles to do so through ZAGIS, assuring those who want to recertify their titles and prospective titleholders that the Zamfara State’s e-C of Os is of the highest quality as it is produced by the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Company bearing all security features that would make the production of its counterfeit impossible.
He urged all landowners to come forward and certify their titles and also to pay their ground rents as and when due.