Avoid The Use And Services Of Quack Surveyors – Spatial Planner
Odumase, February 26, 2023
Ms Gifty Nyarko, Ms Gifty Nyarko, the Director in charge of Physical Planning at the Sunyani West Municipal Assembly has implore land owners and Traditional Authorities to “avoid the use and services of quack surveyors”.
She attested that Traditional Authorities are relevant stakeholders in the planning of physical developments but entreated them to use the right channel and hire the services of qualified surveyors.
Ms Nyarko told thefourlens.com in an interview at Odumase, the Sunyani West Municipal capital in the Bono region.
It was on the proliferation of haphazard developments and associated negative impacts on the current and future generations, climate change and the attainment of SDGs.
She worried that “some traditional Authorities and land owners assumes themselves as planners and surveyors and give verbal authorization to prospective developers to build without due regards to the District Assembly which is the highest planning authority”.
Though the functions of the two professionals (planners and surveyors) are complementary in nature, their duties are different, Ms Nyarko emphasized.
She further explained that “the problem in question is land owners and Traditional Authorities who usually misconstrue development permit to evidence of land ownership documents such as indunture, statutory declaration, title deeds and lease”.
Ms Nyarko therefore called for strong collaboration between the two institutions so that each professional would realize his or her operational mandate and exhibit a high sense of professionalism and effective service delivery in their endeavors.
This would contribute greatly to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 11 that talks about sustainable cities and communities as a means of making cities and human settlements safe, inclusive, resilient and sustainable.
That she noted would further help mitigate climate change and its adverse impact and subsequently help attain goals 14 and 15 which imply an improved life below water and life on land.
Writer’s email: ttchrietoph1@gmail.com