By Linus Aleke, Abuja
The Nigerian Air Force (NAF), on Thursday, said that the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, has approved the establishment of the Directorate of Land Administration (DLA) to secure, control, document, manage and administer all NAF lands and landed properties across the nation.
Director of Public Relations and Information, Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, in a statement, said, incessant issues of trespassing, encroachment and needless disputes over un-demarcated or unfenced boundaries of lands and landed properties belonging to NAF necessitated the establishment of the new directorate to forestall further encroachment.
The new Directorate, which will be domiciled under the Logistics Branch, he said, will among other functions interface with the various Ministries of Lands as well as the Base Commanders in ensuring that all matters related to trespassing and encroachments on NAF lands and landed properties are expeditiously dispensed with in line with extant laws.
According to the statement, “In the course of its expansion over the years, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) acquired lands and landed properties in various parts of the country while some were allocated to the Service by some state governments and the Federal Government. Incessant issues of trespassing, encroachment and needless disputes over un-demarcated or unfenced boundaries of some of these lands and landed properties have, however, necessitated the need for a proactive step towards securing all NAF lands as well as avoiding conflicts and disputes with civilians, institutions or organizations”.
Air Commodore Gabkwet concluded that the need for the NAF to address this situation is expedient as some of these encroachments constitute a risk to the security of some NAF Bases with implications on national security.
