By Gistflash
June 24, 2021
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Muhammad Bello, has expressed reservation over a bill seeking legal backing for Abuja Geographic Information Systems (AGIS).
Bello said this at a public hearing by the Senate Committee on FCT chaired by Sen. Abubakar Kyari on Thursday in Abuja.
The hearing was on the bill to establish AGIS and the bill for establishment of FCT College of Nursing and Midwifery.
Represented by Mr Olusade Adesola, Permanent Secretary FCT Administration (FCTA), he said that the passage of the bill on AGIS would merely amount to creating addition bureaucratic layer for land administration system in the FCTA.
“Upon an in-depth review of the above mentioned bill in the context of the mandate of the AGIS as a technical department, it is our considered opinion that the passage of this bill will merely amount to the addition of a bureaucratic layer to land administration system in the FCTA,” he said.
Bello said that the core function of the AGIS was to record, store and manage geo data on land administration.
“So the function of AGIS in this perspective is to digitise these information so that the use of it can be made by any of the department that will require the services,” he said.
Bello said the passage of the bill in its current form would result in conflict with the roles of the existing statutory departments and may be rather disadvantageous.
“The responsibilities of AGIS do not require the establishment of an agency. Its need would be better served through strengthening its information technology capability as currently being done by the FCTA,” he said.
Sen. Mohammed Gusau (PDP-Zamfara), who was the sponsor of the bill on AGIS, said that the unit needed to be made a full-fledged agency by the law.
According to him, AGIS as just a unit or land department cannot cope with myriad of problems associated with application, processing, allocation and management of land if not given the required legal teeth as a full-fledged agency.
“AGIS as it is now finds it very difficult to cope with problems such as unattended applications for land, processing, multiple allocations and documents forgeries, inefficient revenue generation among others.
On the bill for FCT College of Nursing and Midwifery, Bello said that the passage of the bill would go a long way to address very critical challenges that had been confronting the institutions.
“In section 5(2) (a), it has been proposed that the chairman should be a professional of nurse or midwife.
“But we are of the view that the chairman of such an institution need not be a professional to facilitate cross fertilisation of ideas.
“This is because we believe any person with requisite experience in the system could contribute meaningfully to the school.
“Therefore, we are proposing that Section 5(2) (a) should be that a part time chairman who shall be a person of proven integrity to be appointed by the Minister,” he said.
NAN
