By DALCY LULUA
LANDS Minister John Rosso has assured customary landowners that the Department of Lands is working on amendments to improve the Incorporated Land Group (ILG) registration process, describing the current system as lengthy, cumbersome, and vulnerable to abuse.
Responding to questions from Talasea MP Freddy Kumai in Parliament, Rosso acknowledged widespread concerns over delays and difficulties faced by customary landowners seeking to register their land groups.
“I totally agree that it is a very long and cumbersome process,” Rosso told Parliament.
“The Department of Lands is currently working on ensuring that we do certain amendments to make the process a lot easier for people to access.”
Rosso said the current ILG registration system, while established for a good purpose, has been repeatedly exploited by individuals who take advantage of customary landowners.
“The process leaves open a lot of misuse, inconvenience and abuse,” Rosso said. “A lot of learned individuals have taken advantage of the system and abused the rights of our customary landowners.”
He said some landowners had been persuaded to sign documents under the belief that they would benefit from development projects, only to find themselves disadvantaged by arrangements made without their full understanding.
Rosso noted that such abuses have been evident in agricultural and rural areas, where more educated individuals have partnered with developers and sidelined less informed landowners.
He said the department is consulting with other agencies and reviewing recommendations from parliamentary committees to develop reforms that will make the ILG system more accessible, efficient and transparent.
“We want to ensure that the ILG system in its current form is amended to make it accessible, easier and less open to abuse, or to find an alternative system that will better serve our people,” he said.
Rosso noted that land remains one of Papua New Guinea’s most sensitive issues and that reforms must ensure customary landowners can easily register, survey and benefit from the land they own.
Earlier, Talasea MP Freddy Kumai highlighted the challenges faced by customary landowners during the ILG registration process, describing it as lengthy, costly and cumbersome.
Kumai said applicants are required to undertake clan mobilization, prepare family trees, obtain National Identification registration and lodge applications with the Registrar of ILGs.
Many are also forced to make repeated trips to Port Moresby to resolve administrative issues, creating significant financial hardship for rural communities.
The Talasea MP questioned why many ILG applications take more than 12 months to process and sought information on the number of pending applications currently before the Registrar of ILGs.
He also asked whether the government plans to decentralize ILG registration services to provincial or regional lands offices and whether an integrated digital registration system linking the Department of Lands, National Identification and other relevant agencies could be introduced to streamline the process.
Rosso said the department is actively considering reforms aimed at simplifying registration procedures, reducing delays and strengthening protections for customary landowners against exploitation.