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LAND USE CHARGE LAW; THE FACTS, THE BENEFITS AND THE FUTURE OF LAGOS STATE

Published

6 years ago

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The government of Lagos state is not unaware of the reactions of a section of the public on the reviewed land use charge law of 2001. According to statistics, by 2030, Lagos state is projected to become the third largest consumer market in the world with a population of 35.8 million, closely behind Tokyo and New Delhi. Expectedly, high population growth and rapid urbanisation will put infrastructure and public services under enormous pressure. The question is, are we ready? In order to improve on service delivery, increase internally Generated Revenue (IGR), and not depend on the federal revenue, Lagos State has sought to grow its revenue base by ensuring all economic activities on Real estate gives a return to the government for the sole purpose of improving the living conditions of residents of Lgaos State.

The implemented Land Use Charge Law (LUCL) is a repeal of the Land Use Charge Law 2001, it was reviewed by the Lagos State House of Assembly and signed into Law by the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode on February 8, 2018. The LUCL 2018 which replaced the 2001 law is a merger of all Property and Land Based Rates and Charges in Lagos State
There was an urgent need for the repeal, as the old law had not been reviewed for over 15years, since 2001. Under the old law, the LUC rate was totally inaccurate and retrogressive which deprived the state of keeping track of all economic activities that relates to land in Lagos State.

The new law is a consolidation of Ground Rent, Tenement Rate, and Neighbourhood Improvement Levy. This charge is payable annually in respect of all real estate properties in the state, which means owners and occupiers holding a lease to a Property for ten (10) years or more are now liable to pay the annual LUC invoice charged.

Thus, the Tenement Rates Law, the Land Based Rates Law, the Neighbourhood Improvement Charge and all other similar Property Rates or Charges, Laws or amendments to any such property Laws shall cease to apply to any property in Lagos State as from 2018. Nonetheless, all pending invoices, orders, rules, regulations, etc. under the 2001 repealed Law shall continue to be in effect until such obligations are discharged.

Amount payable is expected to be made from January 1 of every year and can be calculated by multiplying the Market Value (MV) of that property by the Applicable Relief Rate (RR) and Annual Charge Rate (CR). Upon receiving a notice or not, the new law has made it possible for owners to calculate their charge, and enable prompt payment, which allows them to benefit from a 15% discount for early payment, applicable to payments made within 15 days of receipt of Demand Notice.

For people saying the use of Market Value should not be the basis for deriving the LUC rate. We ask, what better application should be used? The cost of building houses varies according to area, so each property needs to be valued according to its location, in order to achieve a standardized rate for everyone that is progressive and rational. It is instructive to note that, according to the law, the incidence of payment is on the Landlord and not the tenant.

The State Government has made available some exemptions, which means that after some years of paying your LUC, you may fall under the category of property owners who do not need to pay LUC anymore. This exemption applies to pensioners of 60 years and above who are owners and occupiers of the property.

Other properties exempted include; properties used for public and religious activities, properties used as registered educational institutes and charitable activities, , public cemeteries and burial ground and all palaces of recognized Obas and Chiefs in the State.

Furthermore, various reliefs have been made available to payers, they include a general 40% relief for all property liable to LUC payment, a 10% relief for owners and occupiers with persons with disabilities, a 10% relief for owners and occupiers of 70years and above, a 10% relief for properties above 25years, a 5% relief for properties occupied by their owners for over 12years, a 20% relief for non-revenue generating federal and state government property, and 20% partial relief for non-profit making organizations. To enjoy any of these reliefs, applicants must make claims with evidence for approval to the Lagos State Commissioner for Finance.

Let me demonstrate some scenarios here:…
Also, the ministry has engaged professional services of over 100 registered Estate Surveyors and Valuers who in the next six months will visit various properties to get accurate data for valuation that will be used as the basis for billing for another five years. Owners and Occupiers are expected to provide the officials with valid documents to help with the valuation. The LUC 2018 has been reviewed to enable self-assessment, which means property owners can now make their own calculation and know their rate with the help of professional valuers.

The new law also established an Assessment Appeal Tribunal (LUCAAT) which is authorized to adopt the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in resolving disputes concerning LUC Demand Notice, provided the appeal is lodged within 30 days after the receipt of the Demand Notice. Should any property owner is unsure of his or her LUC bill or assessment, we implore such persons to visit any of our help desks in all the local Government Council Areas or Room 11,Ministry of Finance, Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja or send us an email on luc@lagosstate.gov.ng .We are ready to talk, attend to you and clarify issues on individual basis as tax is a personal affair.

How to pay?

Property owners can pay at any branch of the twenty accredited banks in Lagos State as well as on the available online platforms in the comfort of their homes.

Failure to comply in any form with the LUC Law, obstruct of LUCL officials and/or damage to LUC Property Identification Plaques is an offense punishable under the LUCL.

In order to enable the implementation and enforcement of the new LUC, the Lagos State Government has extended the period for the payment of all annual Land Use Charge Demand Notices for 2018 to April 14, 2018.

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EFCC indicts Sirika, brother in new N19bn fraud

Published

3 days ago

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May 14, 2024

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has charged former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, his brother, Ahmad Sirika; and his company – Enginos Nigeria Limited, with over N19.4bn fraud.

The sum is said to be for several aviation ministry contracts from the former minister to Enginos Nigeria Limited, owned by Sirika’s younger brother, Abubakar.

The Sirika brothers and Enginos Nigeria Limited will be arraigned before Justice Belgore of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Garki, Abuja today (Tuesday).

It is the second criminal charge the EFCC will be filing against the ex-aviation minister.

He was last Thursday arraigned for N2.7bn fraud before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja.

Sirika was arraigned on six counts alongside his daughter, Fatimah; brother-in-law, Jalal Hamma, and Al-Buraq Investment Ltd.

The defendants pleaded not guilty while Justice Sylvanus Oriji granted them N100m bail each, with the condition that they must not travel out of the country until the end of the criminal case.

On Monday, EFCC insiders informed The PUNCH that the anti-graft agency had filed a second charge against the ex-minister, bordering on N19.4bn fraud.

In the copy of the fresh charges sighted by our correspondent on Monday, the EFCC alleged that Sirika, “while being the Minister of Aviation, on or about 18th August 2022, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did use your position to confer an unfair advantage upon Enginos Nigeria Limited, whose alter ego, Ahmad Abubakar Sirika, is your biological brother, by using your position to influence the award to him, the contract for the construction of a terminal building at Katsina Airport for the sum of N1,345,586,500.00.”

According to the EFCC, Sirika’s alleged action was a violation of Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000 and punishable under the same section.

In another count, the EFCC alleged that “on or about 3rd of November, 2022, in Abuja,” Sirika used his position “to confer unfair advantage upon Enginos Nigeria Limited, whose alter ego, Ahmad Abubakar Sirika, is your biological brother, by using your position to influence the award to him, the contract for the establishment of Fire Truck Maintenance and Refurbishment Centre at Katsina Airport for the sum of N3,811,497,685.00.”

In another count, he was accused of corruptly awarding a N615,195,275.00 contract to his brother for the procurement and installation of lift and air conditioners and power generators for the Aviation House in Abuja.

Furthermore, the EFCC alleged that Sirika, between August 2022 and May 2023 in Abuja, “had possession of an aggregate sum of N2,337, 840,674.16, which sum you knew indirectly represented the proceeds of criminal conducts of Hadi Abubakar Sirika, who was the Minister of Aviation at the time.”

It was revealed that the ex-minister’s younger brother, Abubakar, was earlier arrested and detained by the EFCC in connection with N3,212,258,930.18 paid to his company, Enginos Nigerian Limited’s bank account by the former minister.

 

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Nigerian Bank chiefs obtain N549bn insider loans in five years

Published

4 days ago

on

May 13, 2024

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Directors and key management personnel of Deposit Money Banks borrowed about N549bn from their financial institutions in five years.

This is according to The PUNCH analysis of the banks’ annual reports filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited between 2019 and 2023.

However, the banks’ loans and advances to some directors and key management personnel as well as related party transactions dropped significantly in 2023.

These transactions dropped to N52.40bn for eight financial institutions compared to N111.31bn in 2022, indicating a 52.92 per cent decline in one year.

Financial institutions reviewed in the 2023 review include Access Holdings, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa, Fidelity Bank, Wema Bank, Stanbic IBTC Holding Plc and the FCMB Group.

This decline came amid the release of new corporate governance guidelines by the Central Bank of Nigeria which went into effect August 1, 2023.

In the circular dated July 13, 2023, and signed by Director, Financial Policy and Regulation Department, Chibuzo Efobi, the guidelines which imposed responsibilities on the bank board and the executive compliance officers, supersede other previous codes, circulars and related directives, according to the apex bank.

The CBN guidelines on related party transactions said, “Banks shall establish a policy concerning insider trading and related party transactions by directors, senior executives, and employees, as well as publish the policy or a summary of that policy on their website. 22.2 The policy shall contain appropriate standards and procedures to ensure it is effectively implemented. 22.3 In addition to the requirements in Section 22.2, there shall be an internal review mechanism carried out by the internal audit function of the bank, to assess the compliance and effectiveness of the policy.

“22.4 Any director whose facility or that of his/her related interests remains nonperforming in any financial institution for more than one year shall cease to be on the board of the bank and shall be blacklisted from sitting on the board of such bank and that of any other financial institution under the purview of the CBN. 22.5 No director-related loans and/or interest thereon shall be written off without the CBN’s prior approval.”

Leading the pack in terms of major decline in loans to related parties and entities controlled by key management personnel was Fidelity Bank Plc, which went from N92.31bn at the end of December 2022 to N2.09bn at the end of last year.

In footnotes, the bank however said that some of the related parties like A-Z Petroleum Limited, Dangote Group and Genesis Group as of 31 December 2022, had “exited the related party relationship post 2022 financial year in line with CBN requirement.”

In 2022, the total value of insider loans for 10 banks including Access Holdings, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa, Fidelity Bank, Wema Bank, Stanbic IBTC Holding Plc, FCMB Group, Unity Bank and Sterling Bank amounted to N131.04bn.

Fidelity Bank led the highest for the year, followed by Unity Bank at N17.32bn and UBA at N13.74bn.

In 2021, the loans to related parties of these financial institutions rose to N139.16bn with Fidelity Bank and UBA leading at N97.73bn and N15.28bn, respectively. GTCO trailed in third position with N6.859bn.

Between 2019 and 2020, a total of N226.6bn was disbursed as loans. In 2019, eleven banks borrowed its key management personnel a total sum of N29.65bn. The figure also includes loans to companies related to the directors.

An analysis showed that GTCO lent N155m, Zenith Bank (N1.76bn), UBA borrowed its directors N297m, Wema Bank (N5.2bn), Stanbic IBTC (N95m), FCMB (N4.8bn), Unity Bank(N7.14bn), Sterling Bank (N10.12bn) to related parties.

In 2020, the figure increased by 564 per cent or N167.32bn to N196.97bn.

Checks showed that Access Bank lent the highest with a total of N174bn to its directors and companies related to them. This was followed by Unity Bank with N7.55bn. Third on the list was Sterling Bank with N6.01bn.

Other banks including Fidelity borrowed its directors N986.2m, GTBank (N67.9m), Zenith Bank (N1.797bn), UBA (N206m), Wema Bank (N2.82bn), Stanbic IBTC (N332m), FCMB (N3.2bn), Unity Bank (N7.55bn), Sterling Bank (N6.01bn).

Commenting on the trend, the Chief Research Officer at InvestData Consulting, Ambrose Omordion said “In my language, they say, it is the yam that you know that you use to make pounded yam. If an organisation feels that the insider or director can pay the loans given to them, then there is no issue. It is when they do not pay that is where there would be issues.

“Like what is happening now in the economy, banks are not giving loans to ordinary companies unless those with names because of economic headwinds. If they give loans to the public and they are unable to repay, Non-Performing Loans will rise. If the banks offer to insiders that would pay, it is better for them.”

 

The Punch

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Court Orders Arrest of Ex-Naval Chief, Usman Jibrin Over Alleged N1.5billion Money Laundering Charges

Published

4 days ago

on

May 12, 2024

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Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has ordered the arrest of a former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Usman Jibrin, and two other officers over N1.5 billion money laundering charge.

 

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) dragged the trio before the court over fraud N1.5bn allegations.

 

The court issued the arrest warrant after hearing a motion exparte marked FHC/ABJ/CR/158/2023 and filed by ICPC counsel, Osuobeni Ekoi Akponimisingha.

 

In the motion, the lawyer submitted that Usman Jibrin Oyibe, Adam Imam Yusuf, Brigadier General Ishaya Gangum Bauka (first to third defendants), were investigated for allegations of money laundering and making false statements regarding diversion of funds in their respective military and paramilitary institutions, into companies in which they allegedly had stake.

 

According to him, at the commencement of the investigation into the allegations, the defendants were released on administrative bail on self-recognition because of their status as serving and former public figures and has since then refused to show up for possible arraignment in court.

 

The Lawyer prayed the court for a bench warrant against the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Respondents (Vice Admiral Usman Jibrin Oyibe, Adam Imam Yusuf, and Brigadier General Ishaya Gamgum Bauka) in charge No. FHC/ABJ/CR/158/2023 which is pending before the court for the purpose of arresting and bringing them to court for their arraignment and trial.

 

Listed as first to sixth defendants in the 17-count charge are Usman Jibrin Oyibe, Adam Imam Yusuf, Brigadier General Ishaya Gangum Bauka, Lahab integrated & Multi Services Limited, Gate Coast Properties International Limited and Ummays Hummayd Energy Ltd

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