Oyo Seals Access Bank, Heritage Bank, Others

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The premises of Access Bank, Heritage Bank and other companies in Oyo State have been sealed by the state government over their failure to pay the land use charge.

A statement signed on Tuesday, September 5, 2023, by the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr Dotun Oyelade, disclosed that the affected organisations refused to act on the notices sent to them before the closure of their business premises.

Apart from commercial banks, some telecommunications masts around the Ibadan metropolis were not left out by the state government.

It was gathered that the enforcement team of the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development was led by the Director for Land Use Charge, Mr Olufisayo Ogunbiyi.

Mr Ogunbiyi assured that once the affected companies pay the required land use charge, their premises would be reopened for business, noting that the state government has zero tolerance for non-compliance to its policies.

He appealed to business owners to always pay their fees to the state government account to ensure their businesses are not disrupted as the exercise is still continuing.

The Land Use Charge director equally urged residents of the state to contact the Ministry on 0700OYOLANDS (070069652637) or send an email to [email protected] for enquiries.

According to him, ratepayers can also make Land Use Charge payments by visiting pay.lands.oyostate.gov.ng, while people can make an online payment by downloading the Oyo State Property Reference System (OYPRS) through Google Play Store or App Store, which will identify the building/property and land use charge outstanding.

Amongst the team that went out for the enforcement were land officers as well as representatives of Private Networks Nigeria Ltd, the IGR Consultant for the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development.