Top: The Land Authority headquarters in Monrovia. The DayLight/Carlucci Cooper
By Varney Kamara
MONROVIA – Mayors across the Country Thursday refused to sign a land governance agreement with the Liberia Land Authority, citing a lack of prior information.
The Mou aims to enhance land governance through collaboration among the Land Authority, the Mayor’s Council, and Township Commissioners. It solicits the officials’ collaboration in identifying public and government lands.
“We did not expect to come here today to sign the MoU. We cannot sign a document whose contents we have not seen or reviewed,” Gallah Varpilah, chairman of the Mayor Council of Liberia, said at a news conference at the Land Authority’s headquarters in Monrovia.
“As it is now, we cannot sign because we do not know the full details of what is in it. We would love to have the document, review it, and then make a decision.”
Kweshie Tetteh, the Land Authority’s communication director, said it was “an oversight” not to share the document with the mayors.
The Land Authority displayed the document to the public but did not share copies with journalists, promising to upload it to its website.
Also at the news conference, the Land Authority unveiled new regulations on squatters’ rights and a new form for deeds.
The squatter’s regulation does not allow people to build concrete or permanent structures on public lands.
On the other hand, the form is fitted with security features that vary from one country to another. It is intended to enhance the customary deed process.
“By unveiling this form today, the LLA has taken a giant step further to reduce land conflict in this country,” said Samuel Kpakio, the Land Authority’s Chairman.
“Now that it has been unveiled, in the coming days or weeks, [the Land Authority] will embark on a massive public awareness campaign to educate our people on their rights and how they can legally acquire land,” Kpakio added.
Due to the regulations, the Land Authority lifted a February ban on public land sale. The moratorium aimed to address unregulated land sales and conflicts.
“After months of careful review and, [because] this Commission has already put into place new regulations and mechanisms to effectively address those issues, the moratorium on the sale of public land is hereby lifted,” Kpakio said.
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