Property owners laud Obaseki over Simplified Land Registration Procedure, say ‘we never had it so good’

Stakeholders and property owners converged on the capital city of Edo State, Benin City last Sunday
to officially herald the commencement of the 2019 Certificate of Occupancy promo, an initiative of the state government that aims to reward voluntary collection of the state’s digitally issued
certificates of occupancy.
The state government had announced a drastic reduction in the cost and timeframe for obtaining
the legal documents required by property owners.
In the past, property owners, estate agents and stakeholders groaned under the burden of a lack of transparency, high processing fees and unduly
lengthy processing times for processing property documents in Edo State.
The Godwin Obaseki-led government made property issues a top priority at the advent of the administration and systemic overhaul began, culminating in the establishment of the Edo
Geographic Information Service (EdoGIS).
Tracking the genesis of the land use transformation, the Managing Director, Edo Geographic Information Service (Edo-GIS), Arch. Frank Evbuomwan, opined that the deployment of innovative
solutions enabled the agency to reduce the turn-around time for the issuance of electronic
Certificates-of-Occupancy in the state.
Speaking with journalists in Benin City, Edo State capital on Sunday, Evbuomwan said the Simplified Land Registration Procedure, an initiative of the Godwin Obaseki-led administration, has
continued to receive accolades from members of the public.
He noted, “The feedbacks from members of the public have been encouraging. Our people are very
happy with the new process which is a lot easier, cheaper and a faster way to get a C-of-O.”
He said “the innovation is a deliberate policy of the Obaseki-led administration to offer betterservices
to our people and the people are happy the services are better. Turn-around time has always been a
function of bureaucracy. It takes way too long to get the bureaucracy moving. That is one of the first
steps we changed, moved from a hierarchical system to a horizontal system.”
Evbuomwan further said that “From months and years for processing the document in the past, we
have reduced it to weeks and once you complete your documentation, including timely payment of
the fee, we can process your C-of-O in 30 working days”.
Through this promo, the state government will reward property owners who collect their certificates
of occupancy within 30 days with exciting prizesincluding generators, microwaves, washing machines,
motorcycles and the grand prize, a 14-seater bus.
On their part, property owners welcomed the new development and lauded the Edo State
Government on the gains that had been achieved in the land use processes in Nigeria.
Speaking on behalf of the group, the Chairman of the Edo chapter of the Property Owners
Association of Nigeria, Dr. Osagie Obasohan, described the last three years as a revelation of what is
possible in Nigeria with purposeful and visionary leadership.
“Never have we had it so good in this state. We no longer have CDA boys harassing us and we can
get our land documents on time at a fraction of what it used to be. Only God can bless our governor who has distinguished himself from amongst his peers across the country. We support him and will continue to do so because all people of this state have felt his presence”.