TheCable

Uba Sani, former presidential adviser, is the rightful owner of a disputed parcel of land in Hayin Danbushiya community, Kaduna state, Ibrahim Hassan, the state director-general of lands and survey, has said.

Hassan recounted the history of the controversial land on Tuesday, maintaining that Sani (pictured), who is now political adviser to Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna state, is the officially recognised owner.

He said the Danbushiya community was first known as “eastern sector” but the name was changed to Millennium City when Patrick Yakowa became governor of the state.

“During the military era of Governor Lawal Jafaru Isa, the state government announced a law banning sale or buying of any portion of the land, as government had plans for development for the benefit of all,” he said.

“The military administration engaged in public enlightenment on the ban, which lasted for a whole year. The law was clear about the fact that anyone who bought any portion of that land in the years preceding 1994 did so at his or her own risk. However, farming on the land was allowed pending when the government housing project kicked off.

“I was the general manager of KASUPDA when Yakowa directed the agency to update records regarding the land ahead of mass housing project, under public-private partnership. The final sketch which was approved by the late governor is still the legally recognised document.”

Hassan said in the official records, “there was a company known as M&U, which is today being associated with Malam Uba Sani, that applied for a land in respect of the mass housing project in the area. Everybody in that community knew when Malam Uba Sani made all the necessary payments to the government for ownership”.

When the controversy came up, he said, he visited the area along with the director of town planning and met the people, who were alleging encroachment, in the presence of traditional rulers of the place.

“Afterwards, we asked the director of evaluation to forward records of payment of compensation in respect of the said land and it turned out that all deserving people in the community had since been paid,” he said.

Hassan said he asked the traditional ruler of Danbushiya how some people could be “fraudulently” claiming ownership of a portion of the land when he have since forwarded copies of the state government’s law banning unauthorised use of the land.

“Up to now the traditional ruler has no answer,” he said.

“It is now evident that anyone who denies Malam Uba Sani the right to legitimate ownership of that land is unfair to the man.”

The Gidan Daji Community had sued Sani to a magistrate court accusing him of landgrab, but some saw it as a proxy war instigated by opponents of el-Rufai ahead of the 2019 governorship election.