BUA Group led by Abdul Samad Rabiu is in hot soup as the company has been summoned by the Kogi State House of Assembly over its failure to pay for a 50,000-hectare land it acquired 10 years ago.
The Assembly on Monday, October 17th, 2022 issued the summon at a public hearing of one of its ad-hoc committees in Lokoja.
The hearing was held in a hotel due to the recent fire incident that engulfed the assembly complex.
The Deputy Speaker of the House, Alfa Momoh-Rabiu, read the summons after a presentation by Salihu Mustapha, Acting Surveyor-General of the state.
Mustapha, in his presentation, said; “We are having problems with the BUA Group over 50,000 hectares of land it acquired in 2012 and even obtained a certificate of occupancy (C of O) but has not paid a kobo for the land.”
“We have written to the group several times but it has not responded to any of the letters.”
“No compensation has been paid to the communities that own the expanse of land.’’
“If BUA Group refuses to pay for the land and compensate the community, the government shall revoke the certificate of occupancy.”
However, the Ad-Hoc Committee’s Chairman, Umar Tenimu, said; “It is an offence for BUA Group to hold the land for more than 10 years without paying for it.”
“The company should be summoned to come and explain why it refused to pay for the land and why it refused to compensate the community involved.”