Lagos — President, Nigerian Institute of Estate Surveyors and Valuers, Chief Emeka Onuora, has said with only 4,000 estate surveyors in the country, quacks will continue to infiltrate their ranks.

Onuora, who made the call at a news conference in Calabar, weekend, called for the repeal of the Land Use Act, which he said was hindering proper land administration in the country.

He identified "Estate Agents" as some of the quacks in the profession and declared that his regime, inaugurated in April, would wage war against quackery and take measures to integrate some of the estate agents into the Institute.

"We will form an association of estate agents, to enable us have control over that aspect of our profession, because it is one area where we, as professionals, do not have time for," he said, adding that in forming the association, a minimum standard would be met by those who would be registered to practice.

"We have decided that the minimum educational qualification would be Secondary School Leaving Certificate," and expressed concern about the involvement of lawyers in property marketing and tenancy issues.

"When we are through with formation of the estate agents association and registration of qualified persons, any other intruder will be taken as a quack and treated as such," Onuora said.

He said events in the country over the years had shown that government was not sincere in its land transactions, and therefore had no reason taking land from the owners.

"We do not understand why land owners in the country should lose their land and without compensation," he said.