The Managing Director of Powell Homes and Shelters Limited, Onyekachi Emmanuel, has called on Governors of the South East States to regularise the levies estate developers and investors pay to the youths of various communities in the name of “Ogbanecheagu levy.”
Emmanuel, who also doubles as the Publicity Secretary of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria, Enugu State Chapter, made the call in Enugu on Thursday.
He said that the exorbitant levies, which often lack uniformity and proper coordination, amount to huge impediments on community development and the real estate business in particular.
According to Emmanuel, some communities have multiple rounds of land levies, and sometimes a new regime of the levy enforcement teams tend to deny knowledge of the transactions and payments made to the previous regime.
He said, “We find some communities these days doing multiple rounds of Ogbanecheagu fees because the method of selection of the enforcement agents is usually by elections in the host communities.
“So when you buy a property and you are quick to pay the Ogbanecheagu fees, if you arrive to develop the same property in a few years, some other groups would still come to check if you have paid.
“Unfortunately, sometimes even when you show proof of payment with a receipt, they would tell you that they are not aware of it, that it’s not an authentic receipt. Meanwhile, they were not in power at the time you paid.”
“This is one of the areas where the concept of Ogbanecheagu is being abused—a lot of extortion from investors and developers. But if it’s properly harnessed and regulated, it’s actually an idea that will go a long way in enhancing security and development in the communities.”
He also revealed that estate developers, property owners and investors currently bear a lot of costs, providing their own security despite the huge amounts paid to the Ogbanecheagu youths.
He noted that intervention by the government and community authorities will ensure uniform payments across the Southeast and address the challenge of undue extortions in the real estate sector.
