Kota Kinabalu: The State Government is committed to resolving various land issues, including expediting the issuance of titles for native lands and expanding digitalisation to enhance land management statewide.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the Lands and Surveys Department is always proactive and sensitive to the needs of the people, especially on long-standing land ownership issues.
“For example, 1,279 conditional Native Titles (NT) have been prepared and handed over in Pulau Banggi.
“Furthermore, 2,674 lots have been surveyed, 1,562 are in the process of draft title preparation, and 1,112 are still under review,” he said when winding up for the Chief Minister’s Department during the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting.
Hajiji said rural areas have not been neglected, with 36,803 lots covering 224,608 hectares being issued NTs in districts such as Keningau, Tambunan, Nabawan and Tenom.
On the issue raised by Alias Sani (Sekong) concerning the absence of officially declared villages over the past five years, Hajiji said 16 applications are being processed at the district level and would be declared after approval from the District Land Use Committee.
“The Government remains committed to establishing organised native villages in accordance with the outlined policies,” he said.
Concerning application for land status change in Kg Sugud, he said, the request for 56.18 acres is in process and would be presented at the committee meeting in May.
To a suggestion by Datuk Ewon Benedick (Kadamaian) for a special provision for issuing land titles not under the Sabah Native Land Services Programme (Pantas), Hajiji said the proposal would be studied.
“The Government does not reject any suggestions that benefit land ownership for the people,” he said.
Responding to Jamil Hamzah (Bugaya), he said, the backlog of land applications has been successfully reduced from 313,543 in 2011 to 28,044 by March 2025, a decrease of 91 per cent.
“This is the result of implementing the Pantas programme and using ICT technology to expedite processing.”
He acknowledged that there are still physical issues such as land overlaps and ownership disputes that slow down the process.
“In addition, new applications received each year also increase the workload for field officers.”
To expedite the transfer of NTs, Hajiji said the Verify Land Title Information System (VLTIS) has reduced the process to just 10 to 40 days.
This process depends on the interpretation of the ordinance regarding the definition of natives as stipulated in Ordinance Cap. 64.
On the Nabawan scheme land application, he said 285 lots have been issued titles, while 484 Pantas titles have been handed over to owners and a further 335 have been printed and are ready for delivery.
He expressed the Government’s willingness to consider using the services of licensed land surveyors if necessary in the future.
Regarding the issues raised by Datuk Yakubah Khan (Karambunai) concerning Kg Norowot and Kg Kinabakan, Hajiji explained that Norowot was previously included as a grazing reserve and could not be processed.
However, a new application for 23 acres has been supported for declaration as a new village site.
As for Kg Kinabakan, no declaration applications have been received, but the area is located within the Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP) zone, and residents have been relocated to reserve land in Boronuon, Telipok.
To the issues raised by Datuk Masiung Banah (Kuamut) concerning the land office in Tongod, Hajiji said the application has been included in the development planning of the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP)