By Linus Aleke, Abuja
Stakeholders in surveying and mapping, as well as defense and security, have called for an urgent review of the Survey Coordination Act 1962, to guarantee security and enhance development in the country.

They also noted that the geography of any nation is the first prime target of enemies in the sphere of espionage and military strategy, which informs the urgent need for coordination meetings.

The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami said this at the 2022 collaboration meeting of the office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation OSGoF and the Armed Forces and other security agencies on the implementation of the Survey Coordination Act.

Represented by Deputy Director Public Prosecution, Ministry of Justice, Mr. Usuf Abdulkadir, the Minister said that when your enemies know your more than you do, they have the advantage and leverage over you in the event of aggression.

According to him, “It is evident also that the dynamic of national security are fast-changing globally as technological supremacy and economic wealth and prowess of nations are now being flexed and measured by the ability of nations to solve virtually every problem online using IT to outwit their contemporaries, not in the physical battlefield this time, but in cyberspace. Note also that our national security is not only threatened from outside the borders of this nation but more so within our borders, as the menace of kidnappers, bandits, cattle rustlers, etc continue to challenge our collective security”.

Earlier in his address of welcome, the Surveyor-General of the Federation, Mr. Abuduganiyi Adeyemi Adebomehin said that his office collaborates with various sectors and stakeholders of the economy on diverse platforms for several purposes.

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He believes that the effective implementation of the Survey Coordination Act will be almost impossible without the collaboration of the military, the police, and paramilitary organizations.

In a paper titled reforming and implementing the survey coordination act: Issues, challenges and the need for collaboration, the Acting Director Research and Policy Analysis, Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution, Dr. Joseph Ochogwu said that the survey coordination act 1962 is an old and outdated legal instrument which cannot effectively serve the modern mapping and surveying professionals and industry in the country.

“We are left with no other choice than to reform the survey coordination act 1962 into a modern and purpose fit legal instrument which will transform the surveying and mapping sector. Invariably, leading to us to our development status as a people and nation,” Ochogwu said.