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Revenue drive: Lagos Assembly to tighten noose on worship centres, reviews land use charge law
In a bid to review the revenue of Lagos State, a bill that would review the current Land Use Charges in the state went through second reading on the floor of the State House of Assembly during plenary on Thursday.
The law tagged; “A Bill for A Law To Repeal The Land Use Charge Law 2001 and Enact Land Use Charge 2017 and For Connected Purposes” was subsequently committed to the House Adhoc Committee on Finance headed by Hon. Yinka Ogundimu,while clerk of the house will make available other needed hands.
According to the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, the law was all about increasing the revenue generation of the state.
Obasa observed that a situation, where a few consultants are working with the state governments on the collection of land use charges is not good enough, while calling for increase in the number of the consultants.
“We need more consultants to do the job so that the entire state could be covered in the collection of land use charges. Whatever tribunal that would be set-up to deal with offenders should have the support of the government.
“On the issue of exemptions, we cannot exempt religious organizations because most of the worship centres are making money. We could only exempt Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs),” he said.
The Majority Leader of the House, Hon. Sanai Agunbiade had informed the House that the Bill would be going through second reading.
Agunbiade stated that the Bill would repeal the existing law on land use charge, adding that it is an executive Bill.
He stressed that the bill would prohibit the application of other relevant laws relating to land use.
The Deputy Speaker of the House, Hon. Wasiu Eshinlokun-Sanni supported the Bill, saying that it would help increase the revenue of the state.
In supporting the proposed law, Hon. Gbolahan Yishawu stated that it should give provision for certain approval by the state house of assembly, and called the attention of the House to the issue of enforcement of collection of the charges.
He frowned at a situation, where only about 300,000 houses are paying land use charges in a state with about two million houses.
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