Report of the National Inquiry into the Land Rights of Indigenous Peoples 83 to “apply” for individual land titles rather than communal land titles. Second, the acceptance by financial institutions of individual titles as collaterals. 6.7 However, land title applications for State land under section 12 of the SLO are not without problems. Approval for such applications is dependent on the availability of land and is subject to comments from at least 12 departments in the Land Utilisation Committee (LUC). As such, application for a title under section 12 involves a lot of delays. 6.8 Problems with processing of land applications make up the highest number of complaints (88 cases) under this category. The majority of these were made through community representatives, which means that the actual number of complaints may involve most, if not all, of the residents in a particular community. Most complained about the long delays without getting any feedback from the LSD, with the delay in some cases exceeding more than 10 years. 6.9 According to LSD Deputy Director, Mr Lee Chun Khiong (W3), any NCR claimant is entitled to make a claim for unalienated country land by himself or through the village head or the Assistant Collector of Land Revenue (ACLR) in writing. In accordance with section 14 of the SLO, once an NCR claim is recorded, the ACLR should conduct an investigation, including doing a ground check on the validity of the claim. Apparently in the past, the Land Survey had relied upon Form (LSF) 1898 as a means of verifying the status of the land when investigating NCR claims, but this form is no longer made available. 6.10 When dealing with land applications from indigenous communities, Mr Galus Ahtoi (W10), an expert witness, told the Inquiry that the land office usually directs the applicant to apply under section 12 of the SLO even though the special provision to deal with NCR claims under section 14 exists. He explained “… (land) applications differ from (land) claims but what villagers know is only about applications even though they have been living in a particular area for a long time and would qualify for NCR claims. According to Section 14, native customary land claims can be made through a letter to the PPHT by the headman, where the PPHT would then make a decision”. 6.11 Based on the SLO, NCR under section 15 as well as customary tenure under section 65251 confer upon the holder a permanent, heritable and transferable right of use and occupancy in the land.252 Therefore, issuing a native land title is not necessarily the only option for natives to secure ownership of their traditional land. 6.12 However, more recently, a statement by the State Attorney General (AG) regarding the 1930 cut-off point for establishing NCR has created concerns. LSD witness, W3, in his statement to the Inquiry said that in order to ensure that an application for land claim was genuine, the LSD would look into the occupation of the land before 1930, that is, prior to the enactment of the Sabah Land Ordinance, as opined by the AG, before according recognition of NCR based on sections 6 and 88 of the said Ordinance. However, this is merely an opinion and is yet to be tested in court. 251 “Customary tenure” means the lawful possession of land by natives either by continuous occupation or cultivation for three or more consecutive years or by title. 252 Section 66 of the SLO. chapter 6_a4.indd 83 7/5/13 6:47 PM