THE government's
move to convert all property owned through power of attorney (PA) into
temporary leases is aimed at increasing transparency in land ownership but PA
will still be allowed in certain cases, said the Minister of Development
yesterday.
In an interview with The Brunei Times, Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya
Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Hj Suyoi Hj Osman explained that with the new
regulations, all 47,000 deeds issued through PA will be converted to 60-year
leases that must be registered with the Land Department. Previously, land and
property deeds issued through PA were not required to be registered with the
Department.
"A lease is more transparent. Ownership is very clear for the span
of 60 years that they will own the land," said the minister on the
sidelines of a meeting for the Eighth session of the Legislative Council
(LegCo). "(Our objective) is more transparency. Anytime we can prevent the
transfer of (land) to people who are not entitled to own these lands."
The move, announced on Thursday during a LegCo meeting, predominantly
affects permanent residents and foreign investors who have used PA to purchase
assets such as housing or land. Under Brunei law, only citizens are eligible to
own land outright. PA is a written authorisation for an attorney to act on a
person's behalf in private or business affairs.
The minister rebuffed suggestions that the new policy would deter
foreign investment in Brunei, saying the authorities were still reviewing
conditions that would allow PA to be used for commercial land development.
"For the purpose of development it will still be allowed on a
case-to-case basis, that will be no problem.... But for the purpose of
ownership, that's something that we want to control," he said.
The announcement of the new regulation, which closes a legal loophole
for non-Bruneians to buy land, has caused a stir amongst the community and
members of LegCo.
During yesterday's meeting of LegCo, YB Hj Ahmad Morshidi Pehin Orang
Kaya Digadong Seri Diraja Dato Laila Utama Hj Abdul Rahman raised the issue of
PA once again:
"On the issue of buying and selling property, most land owners who
wish to sell their land choose their payment to be settled by a Memorandum of
Transfer (MOT). If the PA is terminated, are there other ways to secure the
purchase of property so that brokers will not use the settled payment, even
though the request of ownership was not approved?" he asked.
The Minister of Development responded by saying full payment can be
settled prior to the end of the 60-year lease or at the term's end, and the
PA-issued deed can also be used as collateral with banks.
The decision to convert PAs into leases was made on October 1, 2011
after discussions between the Ministry of Development and the Attorney
General's Chambers. Amendments to the Land Code are currently being drafted in
order to enforce the policy.
QURATUL-AIN BANDIAL AND RACHEL THIEN
The Brunei Times
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After reading this; I was getting very skeptical. We understands that all the ministers are trying their best in work.
ReplyDeleteWe are the 3th generations PRs staying in Brunei. We have no intention to leave the country as Brunei is my hometown.
Having said that; we are really concern about this lease system.
We would like to know, if we are to purchase a lease land; is it renewable after it matured in 60 yrs?
We hope that relevant authority would be kind to help us to resolve this doubt.
Thank you.