By Omeiza Ajayi

ABUJA: Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the Federal Capital Territory FCT minister, Lere Olayinka, has asked the Senator representing FCT, Ireti Kingibe, to again study the Land Use Act and stop advertising her ignorance with regards to the payment of ground rents in the territory.

Describing the Senator’s comment on the enforcement of payment of ground rent as “ridiculously illogical,” Olayinka in a tweet on his X handle on Thursday night, urged the senator to purge herself of the alleged hatred she harbours for the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, and stop seeing issues from the angle of “I hate Wike.”

The FCT Minister’s spokesperson said land allocation is not unconditional as there are conditions precedent, one of which is the annual payment of ground rent.

Olayinka said Kingibe’s recent diatribes against the FCT minister were a further advertisement of her ignorance of the Land Use Act and penchant for seeking cheap political gains on every issue.

He said, “It is ridiculously embarrassing that a serving Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, whose duty is to make laws, is ignorant of the provisions of Section 28, Subsections (a) and (b) of the Land Use Act.

“For the education of Senator Kingibe, Section 28, Subsections (a) and (b) of the Land Use Act provides that ‘The Government may revoke a Statutory Right of Occupancy on the ground of; (a) a breach of any of the provisions which a certificate of occupancy is by Section 10 deemed to contain; and (b) a breach of any term contained in the Certificate of Occupancy.

“Now, is annual payment of Ground Rent not part of the terms contained in the Certificate of Occupancy? Or Senator Kingibe just chose to advertise her myopic attitude to anything Wike?”

The FCT Minister’s spokesperson said she should rather have said that “land owners in the FCT have rights to refuse to pay necessary bills stated in the Certificate of Occupancy issued to them, and that when they so do, the government should simply pick samba and tambourine, and sing their praises.

“Now, if land allottees refused to pay Ground Rent for 10 to 43 years, Senator Ireti Kingibe will just look away if she were the FCT Minister?” He queried.