The
conception of the land use Act as a piece of legislation is far from being an
emasculation of the pre-existing system of customary land tenure rather, it is
meant to solve the various socio-economic problems associated with it,
establish a uniform land policy to cater for the needs of the society eradicate
the multifarious problems associated with the issue of title to land in
Nigeria, and ensure availability of land for agricultural and industrial
development.
It is, therefore, intended in this
essay to show that a landlord under customary law need not to be an individual
since the long established corporate ownership of land under the customary law
has never been faulted.
The land use Act is accepted by all
to be a statue of unique importance and impact. Irikele J.S.C. (as he then was)
once said of this Act that is:
“indisputably the most impactful of all legislative
touching upon the land tenure system of
this country before and after full nationhood”2