CLARIFICATIONS ON THE HANDING OVER OF FEDERAL LAND TITLES BY THE STATE GOVERNMENT

21 Feb 2021

On 18th February 2021, the State Government has handed over a total of 177 land titles to the Federal Government with the actual total acreage of 519.444 hectares or 1,283.57 acres.

There are basically two methods of acquiring of lands for federal purposes by federal agencies, ie. by way of land acquisition of private lands under the Sabah Land Acquisition Ordinance Cap 69 in which the funding for all payments of the land compensation were funded by federal agencies and by way of application of state land.

In 2016, the State Government made a decision that all land for federal purposes to be acquired through land application of stateland will not granted with land title but instead shall be gazetted under section 28 of the Sabah Land Ordinance Cap 68.

Thus the land shall maintain under the State Government.

Land for federal purposes acquired through the land acquisition process and compensation funded wholly by funded by federal agencies will be granted with leasehold land titles.

Examples of land for federal purpose that has been gazetted and maintained under the State Government are the Headquarters Building of the Custom Department at Jalan Sulaman and the Police Station in Tawau.

Land for federal purposes granted with land titles were issued with leasehold titles of 99 years.

The federal agencies will have to pay premium and annual Quit Rent just like other land owners.

Land titles handed over on 18 Feb 2021 were lands for federal purposes acquired by way of Land Acquisition process and lands that were approved before 2016 and premium were fully paid.

Most of the land were already constructed with schools, hospitals and other public facilities.

Land titles granted to the Federal agencies were especially mean for building of public facilities such as schools, hospitals, police stations, Post offices where they are mean to provide services to the public.

BERNARD LIEW CHAU MIN

Director Of Lands and Surveys