The Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, on Tuesday said his administration was mindful of the criticisms trailing the revised Land Use Charge Law and declared that the government was ready for dialogue to resolve the issues.
Ambode made the announcement at the ‘Lagos Means Business’ forum with the Organised Private Sector organised by the state Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Cooperatives.
The governor, who was inundated with questions on the appropriateness of the law, especially the increased charges, said the review of the law was not a deliberate attempt by the government to overburden property owners but a decision taken in the overriding interest of the future of Lagos.
According to him, the law is not new but was passed in 2002 with a provision for review every five years, adding that until now, the law had not been reviewed though all the economic indices had changed considerably in the 15-year interval.
Ambode stated, “The law was made in 2001. It provides that every five years, we should review the charges and also find a way to increase. The law was never reviewed 15 years after until in 2017. Now, the question is this; those who are having commercial properties, the rental income they were getting in 2002 as against the rental income they were getting in 2017, is it the same?
“The level of infrastructure that existed in 2002 as against what has happened in the last 15 years, are they the same? Did it not come at a cost? So, why is the market value of the property that you built with N1m 15 years after, you are selling at N20m. Why do you think somebody who is a buyer will pay N20m for it? Is it not because of the facilities around the property? So, we have to sacrifice; that is how it works everywhere.
“So, somebody comes and say we have increased (the charges) by 400 per cent. The question is 400 per cent of what? You were paying N10, 000 before, now we say you should pay N50, 000 and you are calculating and turning statistics upside down by saying it is 400 per cent.”
The governor said that while the revised Land Use Charge Law required owner-occupiers to pay 0.076 per cent of the value of their properties, pensioners, religious institution, non-governmental organisations and government institutions were exempted from payment.
Ambode added, “So, who will take care of the ones that are free? If you are owner-occupier, you don’t need to pay. So, it’s the commercial part that people are complaining about.
