The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has noted that Governor Uba Sani has demonstrated a humane, constitutional and rights-based approach in exercising his powers under the Land Use Act in Kaduna State.
In a statement signed by Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, the National Coordinator, HURIWA commended the Governor’s handling of compensation for citizens.
The statement commended the recent compensation to households that were affected by the 15-kilometre Ring Road project from Danbushiya Junction to Danhono 2 Junction at the Millenium City.
According to HURIWA, the gesture ‘’ has set a commendable standard for balancing the imperative of infrastructure development with the constitutional rights, dignity and economic wellbeing of citizens whose properties are acquired for public purposes.’’
HURIWA particularly applauded the Governor’s unequivocal declaration that “public interest can never become a justification for injustice” and that development can not be meaningful if it imposes hardship without compassion or pursues progress without fairness.
‘’These principles ought to become the minimum standard by which every Governor in Nigeria exercises the enormous powers conferred by the Land Use Act,’’ Comrade Onwubiko pointed out.
He argued that while the law empowers State Governments to acquire land for overriding public interest, ‘’such authority must never be exercised arbitrarily or in ways that impoverish citizens by dispossessing them of their homes, businesses and ancestral lands without prompt, adequate and fair compensation.
‘’Public interest and the constitutional right to property are not mutually exclusive. Responsible governance demands that both interests are carefully balanced,’’ he added.
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