“Sabah has the most number of land fraud cases compared to other states in the country. A glance at the statistics over the years at the Commercial Crime Division of the police tells the story.”
Hence, the Sabah Land Ordinance should also be amended to plug loopholes used by fraudsters, she elaborated on the sidelines of the current Sabah Assembly sitting. “The solution is for the law to be amended to require the registered owner to be present personally to meet with the Collector when applying for a replacement title.”
“This would enable the Collector to satisfy himself as to the truth or otherwise of the affidavit or declaration and the good faith of the applicant.”
In cases where it was not possible for the registered landowner to be present, stressed Liew, guidelines must be provided for the Collector to exercise his discretion. “This would arise, for example, in the case of an elderly registered landowner who is overseas and cannot travel.”
If amendments are not made to strengthen the Land Ordinance, then fraudsters will continue exploiting its weaknesses and commit land fraud, she warned. “This would have far-reaching effects on the people and potential foreign investors.”
Most of the land fraud cases, explained Liew who is also a senior lawyer in private practice and PKR Sabah Deputy Chairperson, involve registered land being transferred away to third parties without the knowledge and consent of the registered owner. “They fall victim to unscrupulous fraudsters using forged documents including Power of Attorney (PA) to transfer land.”
Liew alleged that fraudsters generally exploited section 120 of the Sabah Land Ordinance to get certified copies of a title before transferring it to a third party. “The forged PAs give the fraudsters ‘complete powers to deal, sell and transfer the said land to a third party. There might be false Statutory Declarations (SD), police reports and the like.”
The weakness in section 120, she continued, was the subjective provision that states, “provided that the Collector shall not in any case issue such certified copy unless he is satisfied as to the truth of the affidavit or declaration and the good faith of the applicant for the same.”
According to section 120, pointed out Liew, it all depends on the discretion of the particular Collector. “Under the present law, the Collector owes no duty of care to the registered landowner as he only needs to be satisfied to the truth of the affidavit or declaration and the good faith of the applicant.”
“The Land Office holding a hearing and publishing notices in the newspapers don’t help.”