04/02/2022
By Vincent Pyati
EVICTION BASED OF FAULTY UDLS: WHERE IS JUSTICE AND FAIRNESS
Many evictions were done and about to be conducted by Urban Development Lease (UDL) holders based on court orders. Are these UDLs genuine? The short answer is NO. These UDLs are not granted following the UDL process stipulated by the Land Act of 1996 and Physical Planning Act of 1989. The process is as follow;
1.0 Declaration of Sub Divisional Zone
Before a land is offered for lease as an UDL, the Office of the Chief Physical Planner (OCPP) /NCD Physical Planning Office;
(a) Verify title status of the subject land and confirm its vacancy;
(b) Establish if it is properly zoned;
(c) Establish whether it is suitable for subdivision by assessing the topography and other attributes; and
(d) Establish whether it is feasible to develop
(e) Seek assurance from utility providers such as PNG Power, Eda Ranu and Telikom to provide basic utility services
If the above concerns are established and found to be a potential UDL site, Office of Chief Physical Planner/NCD Physical Planning Office then does the following,
(a) Prepare a plan showing location of the subject land
(b) Assess subdivision potential of the subject land
When the above requirements are established, a sub-divisional zone application is submitted to the National Physical Planning Board/NCD Physical Planning Board to declare the subject land as a sub division zone. The Board approves the plan and is then published in the National Gazette.
2.0 Submission of Application to Physical Planning Board
An interested applicant submits a concept plan for part or whole of the declared subdivision zone. The OCCP/NCDC Planning Office assesses the application and if it meets requirements and standards, it is further submitted to the Physical Planning Board for consideration.
3.0 Boundary Survey
If the Physical Planning Board approves the concept plan, the applicant submits the approved plan to the Office of the Surveyor General (OSG) to seek permission to do a boundary survey. The OSG certifies the plan after sighting the Physical Planning Board approval and its seal. The applicant then engages a surveyor to conduct boundary survey of the subject land and sends it back to the OSG for examination, approval and registration.
4.0 Land File Creation
If the plan is examined, approved and registered, the OSG writes to the Land Information Service Division within Department of Lands and Physical Planning (DLPP) to create a land file. The Land Information Division of DLPP then creates a land file using the new descriptions given by the OSG to the subject land.
5.0 Land Valuation
The Land Allocation Division of DLPP then requests the Office of Valuer General (VGO) within DLPP to value the subject land. The VGO values it and establish an unimproved value.
6.0 Land Allocation
The Land Allocation Division prepares necessary instruments and tenders the UDL as per Section 106 subsection 1 of the Land Act. An UDL is not supposed to be exempted from tender under any circumstance.
The UDL application is considered by a Special Board apart from the normal Land Board as per Section 106 subsection 2 of the Land Act of 1996. This special board should be composed of 5 members only including the Surveyor General, the Chief Physical Planner, Chairman or Deputy Chairman of the normal Land Board and other two members.
When a UDL is granted, the Land Allocation Division prepares the necessary instruments and produce a UDL for the successful applicant.
7.0 Terms and Conditions
A UDL’s term is not more than 5 years and other lease conditions such as undertaking cadastral boundary surveys at the expense of the lessee, submitting of an application for full planning within a year, submission of a final subdivision plan with subdivision survey plans and other covenants are all listed on the lease document.
8.0 Full Planning Permission
The applicant then submits a proposal for full planning permission the Physical Planning Board for consideration within a year from the date of grant. The following plans are submitted for full planning permission;
(a) Final proposal for subdivision
(b) Plan of the subdivision design
(c) Timetable for development work
If the lease holder doesn’t submit a final plan within a year, Physical Planning Board can recommend to the Minister to forfeit the lease under Section 109 Subsection 2 of the Land Act of 1996.
9.0 Detail Subdivision Survey
The Board considers the plan and if approved, the leaseholder submits the approved subdivision plan to Office of the Surveyor General for examination, approval and registration. The OSG examines, approves and register the survey plan in the central survey registry.
10.0 Stages of Development
The applicant then submits the registered subdivision plans to the OCPP/NCD Physical Planning Office as the final plan. The Physical Planning Board determines the period in which the stages of the development associated with the subdivision shall be carried out.
It also specifies the covenants and conditions relating to physical planning that would be included in new leases granted under Section 110 of the Land Act 1996. The OCPP/NCDC Planning Office monitors the development of the UDL as per the approved schedule. When all the lease conditions are meet and developed as per the approved schedule, it signs of a certificate of completion under Section 81 of the Physical Planning Act of 1989.
11.0 Surrender of UDL and Grant of New Leases
The lessee then surrenders all or part of the land and new leases are granted over the developed portions. It can be in the name of the lessee or at the direction of the lessee.
12.0 Conclusion
Most of the evictions conducted and about to be conducted based on court orders troubles me as a land professional. There is overwhelming evidence of most leaseholders not following the above established process of UDL stipulated by the Land Act of 1996 and the Physical Planning Act of 1989 to obtain them and even do not meet lease conditions but the court rules in their favor.
These illegal land grabbers are then assisted by Police to evict hardworking and resilient citizens who have called these places home for generations. Instead of penalizing the fraudulent land grabbers and their cohorts, the police assist them and evict the innocent citizens.
WHERE IS JUSTICE AND FAIRNESS?
