Issue titles to Itawa tenants – MP

THE Ministry of Lands must speed up the issuing of title deeds to sitting legal tenants of Itawa flats now that it has been established that a Lebanese company is illegal, Bwana Mkubwa MP Jonas Chanda has demanded.

And Dr. Chanda has demanded that investigative wings must probe the illegal sale of land which was on State Lease and still belonged to Ndola City Council pending the issuing of sub leases to sitting legal tenants. In 2010 in line with the then MMD government's policy, the Itawa flats were sold by Ndola City Council to sitting legal tenants. Consequently, after paying for the flats, residents begun the process of having the property registered under common leasehold although they have not been issued with sub leases (subtitles) almost nine years later.

However, while sitting legal tenants who bought the flats almost a decade ago were still waiting for their subtitles for the flats and piece of land on which they were located, the Ministry of Lands sold the land at Itawa Flats to a Lebanese company, Jana Investments Limited in "unexplained circumstances."

During the parliamentary sitting on Tuesday this week, Dr. Chanda queried the status of the said land and Minister of Local Government Vincent Mwale said the sale of the land at Itawa flats by the Ministry of Lands to the Lebanese Company was illegal as the Itawa flats, a property located at Plot number NDO/5524, was under State Lease.