Allegations hindering progress of NCR land survey programme

 

Allegations by certain quarters that the land measurements done under Section 6 of the State Land Code is a way for the Sarawak government to seize native customary rights (NCR) land, has hindered the progress of the NCR Land Survey Programme, says Sibu Land and Survey Department superintendent Mohamad Muazziz Othman.

He said efforts to provide information were carried out through dialogue sessions with landowners on a continuous basis to dispel such allegations.

"Although it is difficult to stop the baseless allegations that are spread on social media, efforts to provide real information will be done continuously so that the NCR Land Survey Programme which began in 2010, can be implemented," he said during a ceremony to handover compensation cheques and other land-related matters here today.

Perimeter survey and gazetting under Section 6 of the State Land Code is the first stage under the programme that recognises NCR lands as Bumiputera Communal Reserves (Agriculture) before individual lots are measured and land titles issued under Section 18.

He said the measurement of individual lots also posed various challenges, especially in terms of getting the cooperation of landowners.

“Among the challenges is the inability of the NCR landowners to carry out preliminary work to determine the boundaries of their land due to old age.

"There are also landowners who are not present during the boundary determination process, causing overlap and leading to disputes among landowners, and this puts a halt to the survey efforts," he said.

The ceremony was officiated by Sarawak Deputy Premier Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, who was represented by Deputy Minister of Town Planning, Town Administration, Land Administration and Environment Len Talif Salleh.

Awang Tengah in a speech read by Len said, as of February this year, the Sarawak Land and Survey Department had managed to survey the perimeter of 1,023,292 hectares of NCR land throughout Sarawak, and of the total, 793,831 hectares had been gazetted.

"A total of 52,711 individual lots have been successfully surveyed involving an area of 64,796 hectares, for the issuance of land titles under Section 18 of the State Land Code," he said.

- Bernama