NAN-H-72
Land
By Gabriel Agbeja
Abuja, Nov. 7, 2016 (NAN) Motor Mechanics and Technicians Association of Nigeria (MOMTAN) has appealed to the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mallam Muhammed Bello, to facilitate the release of lands designated for Mechanic Villages.
The National Chairman of the association, Mr sulaiman Oseni, made the request in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Monday.
Oseni said the release of the lands would empower mechanics and technicians and enable them to contribute meaningfully to the development of the automobiles industry in particular and the economy in general.
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“We want the government to support us with allocation of lands. It is very important for FCT and every other state.
“We want the governors of the states to cooperate in this area and the FCT minister too.
“We had a land that we paid for since 2010. It was allocated to us – about 164 plots. They never release it.
“We have the allocation letter, we know the site the land is. We have paid the statutory N100,000 fees, but the land has not been released to us upon all letters that had been written. That is just one case.
“So, we don’t have land to practice and we have been chased here and there, Mechanic are been seen under the trees working. That is not a responsible way of managing technical economy.
“There is no development that can be achieved in the automobile industry as it affects repair of vehicles if we don’t have permanent sites.
“The mechanic villages that are issued, for example for FCT; those are not enough.
“We have the one for Apo that was originally issued. It’s been taken over and they are now proposing Wasa land, but nobody knows the year that one is going to be ready.
“They have given Kugbo but that cannot contain up to 100 artisans. So we have challenges.“
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He further appealed to the six Area Council Chairmen in FCT to cooperate with the minister on the issue of land allocation for the building of mechanic villages in the council areas.
“By that we will contribute our quota better than what we are doing now to the development of the Nigerian economy,“ he said.
He urged Nigerians to patronise Nigerian mechanics rather than taking their vehicles to foreign companies for repairs.
“When you buy a made in Nigeria car, you should be ready to patronise made in Nigeria mechanics.
“You don’t have to take your vehicle to companies for repairs when the local mechanics are there,’’ he said.
He told NAN that MOMTAN has more than four million members across the six geo-political zones of the country, adding that no fewer than 10,000 of his members operate in FCT alone. (NAN) FGA/YEE
Edited by Emmanuel Yashim
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