Monrovia — The newly inducted Chairman of the Surveyors Licensing and Registration Board of Liberia, Mencer T. Powoe has vowed to restore sanity to the surveying profession by mitigating illegal activities across the sector.
Mr. Powoe said the sector is challenged with fraudulent practices casuing land insecurities and other inconveniences that could degenerate into crisis.
Speaking during the induction of the newly nominated and elected Board, Chairman Powoe disclosed that the surveying is a legitimate and honest profession that requires legal practices and operation, rather than being fill with impersonators purporting to be part of the field.
He said, "The sector is challenged with many issues ranging from multiple criminal surveying of land to impersonators professing to be surveyors and many others."
According to Mr. Powoe, the resulting consequences of the challenges across the land managing mechanism have affected the lives of many citizens leading to hundreds of land dispute cases that have filled the dockets of courts.
"The greatest rogues we have are false and criminal surveyors. They are the ones that are behind our homes with decameters and causing problems with land business every day. Criminals maneuvering to be surveyors are making the shackles of the war to keep affecting."
The chairman threatened to ensure that the days of all illegal surveyors and illegal land sales are brought under control under his leadership as chairman of the board which is responsible to guide the profession and monitor all practices across the sector.
He added that before any individual or person becomes surveyor, there need to be proper training conducted to maintain ethical standards; making sure that the professional backings of the land study remains in in tight for the best capacity building.
He lauded the institution's international partners for the cooperation in having surveyors across the country obtain proper education to make the sector better on a daily basis; evolving with the new speed at which technology is moving.
The Chairman reported that the number of surveyors licensed and registered to conduct surveys in the country is 124. Out of that number about 40 have aged and become incapacitated, leaving the actual number of those in active practice to 84.
He maintained that though the statistics is devastating and pose serious impediments to surveying nationwide, there is still no right bestowed on any individual or person to conduct without being registered or licensed.
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Address the illegal surveyors, he said: "Criminal surveyors, your days are numbered. we are coming after you in the communities. We will end your operations to bring relief to our people and restore sanity to the profession."
He called on legitimate surveyors to practice their profession to the best way they can to collectively institute reforms in the sector for better transformation.
Mencer made the remarks at the ceremony marking the induction of the Surveyors Licensing and Registration Board over the weekend at Smart Liberia in Jallah's Town, Sinkor Monrovia.
Serving as guest speaker, Christopher John Byren the Project Manager for ILAMP noted that the reconstruction of the board is a milestone to land management for the interest of all citizens of Liberia.
He stressed that the registration component of the board is cardinal to all surveyors in order to maintain that those involved with the practice of land related activities meet the best criteria for integrity and transparency.
He then called on the inducted board members to act against criminal commercialization of land and to work tirelessly to implement the regulations in existence for land monitoring.
According to Byren the registration of surveyors and subsequent regularization of licenses will institute professionalization for the sector, guarantee contracts bettering up the relationship between service providers and clients through solid negotiations.
