Surveyor General begins enforcement of Coordination Act

By Ochiaka Ugwu

The Office of the Surveyor General of the Federation (OSGoF) may have concluded plans to begin full implementation and enforcement of the Survey Coordination Act of 1962 as amended with the aim of strengthening national security architecture and enhanced development of physical infrastructure as well as properly situate other critical assets.

In a press statement released in Abuja Thursday, signed by OSGoF Head of Press and Public Relations. Mr Abu I. Michael, it noted the Head of the Survey Coordination Department of the Office, Surv. Semiu Ayinde disclosed this in a meeting with a team from Polaris Digital Tech Ltd and Google representative headed by Surv. Niyi Okuboyejo which he chaired at the Survey House in Abuja on behalf of the Surveyor General of the Federation (SGoF), Surv. Abudulganiyu Adeyemi Adebomehin.

 According to the statement, “Surv. Ayinde further disclosed that the SGoF deemed it fit to have a meeting with Polaris Digital Tech Ltd and Google hence it has been awarded the contract for the street view mapping of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and states of the country.

“The meeting according to him was to avoid violations of the Survey Coordination Acts of 1962 and its subsequent amendments pointing out that OSGoF would not hesitate to ensure the arrest and prosecution of violators of the act. The act stipulates supervision of surveying and mapping activities by OSGoF.  

“He stressed that surveying and mapping activities were of serious security matters and that every datum collected ought to be assessed and processed before they would be used for whatever purposes.

“Speaking in the same vein, the Head of the Photogrammetry and Remote-Sensing, Surv. Azeez Afeez said web and mobile mappings and other related forms are products of surveying and mapping and that both the raw data and processed information ought to be deposited with OSGoF, the repository of geospatial data in the country” the statement concluded .