There is no doubt that land is the most vital ingredient of national socioeconomic development of a nation. Land is wealth no matter its nature or conditions. No land is ever without its purpose. This is because on it depends every economic activity. How a community or country utilizes land determines the level and kind of economic development that takes place in that community or country. The history of land utilization and development in Nigeria dates back to the pre-colonial era. The enactment of Land Use Act in March 1978 by the then Obasanjo military dictatorship marked a watershed in the history of land development in Nigeria. Ever since, there has been countless litigation in courts both on hitherto customary ownership and the new methods of land acquisition that have set individuals, communities and the state against one another. This conflict is most manifest in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria where the people there are vociferously claiming ownership of lands and all the mineral resources inherent in them. The pains of land disputes and conflicts remain gruesome and indelible in the memories of the victims and the collective consciousness of the country.

The main fault of the Land Use Act of 1978 was that it transferred title and ownership of land from individuals and communities to the governors who hold the land in trust but many of whom have been known to have abused the power and privileges conferred on them by the Act. It also made acquisition of land by individuals and corporate bodies for commercial and economic development purposes extremely difficult.

Despite all the cries and agitations for review of the Act, the federal government obstinately refused to embark upon such review exercise. To further worsen the situation, the federal government placed the Act under the 1999 Constitution thus making it extra difficult to review and amend it because any such review and amendment will have to go through the same process as stipulated for the review and amendment of the Constitution itself.

It is therefore heart-warming that President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua has considered it imperative to call for a fairly comprehensive review of the Act by sending 14 Amendment clauses (titled Land Use Act (Amendment) Act 2009 or the Constitution (First Amendment) Act 2009) to the National Assembly for this purpose. The proposed bill seeks to vest ownership of land in the hands of those with customary right of ownership, and also enable farmers to use land as collateral for loans for commercial farming to boost food production in the country. The bill also seeks to restrict the requirement of the Governor’s consent to assignment only which will render such consent unnecessary for mortgages, subleases and other land transfer forms in order to make transactions in land less cumbersome and facilitate economic development. It is noteworthy that since the Act came into being this is the first time such a comprehensive amendment is being proposed. We also note that this amendment is coming exactly thirty one years after the Act came into existence. There is no doubt that the Act has become anachronistic and moribund and has been long due for appropriate review and amendment.

This is why the National Assembly must look very critically at the proposed amendments sent to it by President Yar’Adua. The National Assembly must also expedite action on the review of the Act. Time is of essence here especially against the background of the national race to achieve Vision 20:2020.