By JIMMY KALEBE

The delaying of the Commission of Inquiry (COI) report into Special Agriculture Business Lease (SABL) has angered many landowners in Maprik District in East Sepik.

In a landowner forum held last Friday local landowners in Maprik expressed concerns that this delaying of the report may mean the government is trying to overlook this report and do away with it.

Majority of the landowners have made a call during the forum to the national government to quickly look into the inquiry report and do something with it so that people could engage in a more suitable means to provide land in a more accountable manner for development purposes.

Tony Paliak a senior person in the district while speaking to the forum said through this SABL policy many people has taken opportunities to become middle person causing more inconvenience between the developmental partners and the landowners.

Mr Paliak said at the moment there are no Lands official in Maprik district which has caused much inconvenience between landowners who have tried to incorporate their land for doing business activities adding the government should look at this and stationed one lands official in the district.

Many speakers representing different local level government in the district want the SABL to come into review, the inquiry report be tabled in parliament  and the number of years involved should be scaled down from 99 years to a time limit where is reasonable.

The forum was told that 99 years is too long and anything may happen in that timeframe where people might no longer have their customary title if something goes wrong with signed documents which may lead total lost of customary land title.

Meanwhile a woman participant in the forum in raising the women’s concerns over SABL issue called for immediate tabling of the report on SABL in parliament without delay and a decision should come before the end of the year.

The woman said it is taking too long for the national government to review the report and make decisions adding that the Prime Minister should honor the report and a decision should come early as many landowners are losing their land under SABL.

  She said with four SABL areas currently in the province, other parts of the province also experience boom in development and with the issue still pending, locals feel afraid to submit their land for any development as they think it might come under this and cause them more headache trying to get back their title.

It is also revealed in the forum that there is no residential Lands surveyor in Maprik district to help locals on land matters prompting locals to ask the authorities to station one as early.

Picture Caption…..Part of the landowners of Maprik District that took part in the forum held last Friday