It is welcome news that government has set up a nine-man commission to investigate issues of land allocation in the country. The move shows that the leadership is committed to the establishment of independent and impartial oversight institutions to manage key sectors of national life where they have the competitive edge in the delivery of social justice.The significance of the commission cannot be overemphasised; we are all aware that land is necessary to all production.

Land is the habitation of man,the material to which his labour must be applied for the supply of all his needs.Establishing a commission to investigate how state land is allocated among the citizenry is no doubt a sheer manifestation of government's desire to not only empower the citizenry but also ensure that they become the key beneficiaries of the products of state development.

What makes the commission more fundamental is that it came at a time when there are numerous complaints of unfair land allocations. There are also complaints that land provided for public usage are being sold to individuals. It is very disheartening for people to buy land only to be told after all the papers have been processed that they have not acquired it legally, even though in most cases such people followed the usual procedures, like getting signatures from village heads, paying rates to councils and getting receipts, which are symbols of legality. Above all, those responsible for allocating state lands do it in such a manner that only the rich benefit, while the average citizen is left out.

Members of the commission therefore have a huge task ahead of them. As the president himself stated during the swearing in of some of the members, the commission has to ensure that justice is done. The members should therefore endeavour to act within the dictates of the constitutional provision that warranted their establishment, and execute their functions without fear or favour, affection or ill will. They have to at all times remember that they were selectedbecause they are people of integrity, and that the leadership has great trust in them. Living up to expectation is therefore fundamental.