By Felix Durumbah
Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has fixed Monday, May 26 as date to “exercise rights of ownership” on 4,794 properties recently revoked due to non-payment of ground rent spanning between 10 and 43 years.
The properties are located in choice areas of the nation’s capital such as Maitama, Asokoro, Central Area, Garki 1 & 2, Wuse 1 & 2, and Guzape.
The development came as FCT residents urged a transparent process leading to an altruistic, people-oriented future use deployment that will benefit the common man too.
At a media briefing today by the FCT Minister’s Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Public Communication and Social Media, Lere Olayinka; the Director of Land Administration, Chijioke Nwankwoeze; and the Director of the Department of Development Control, Mukhtar Galadima, the Administration said there will be no going back on the Monday date.
“Ownership of the revoked 4,794 properties in the Central Area, Garki I and II, Wuse I and II, Asokoro, Maitama and Guzape districts, had already reverted to the FCTA, and as from Monday, next week, the government will begin to exercise its rights of ownership on the affected landed properties.
“As usual, this will be done without consideration as to ownership of the affected landed properties. It will be purely in line with extant laws and regulations guiding the process,” the officials said.
On his part, Galadima disclosed that the affected properties will be sealed and access restricted, adding that the Administration will determine the future use or disposition of the properties in due course.
However, concerned Nigerians have requested the FCT Minister, Barrister Nyesom Wike, to ensure the “future use or disposition” of the properties are not for the exclusive benefit of some members of the ruling class, family members or cronies.
A resident, Malam Nuhu Auwalu, said he feared that the properties may be redistributed to political friends of some persons in power.
“I hope they don’t take the properties from these persons who couldn’t pay the ground rent and hand them to their political allies as that would be a great evil against Nigerians,” he said.
A political analyst and keen watcher of FCTA developments, Mr. Ochei Ochei, said he feared that the properties may be used as “useful chips” to lure or compel needed opposition figures to cross over to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), especially as 2027 nears.
“My own take is, given what I perceive to be desperation by this government to remain in power by 2027 amid poor performance, they may utilize these high value properties as political tools or useful chips to force, lure or compel some beautiful bride opposition figures, to cross over to APC,” he said.
To Ochei, such move may be seen as deft by the involved government officials, but “these properties are the people’s properties, belonging to the Nigerian people and being held in trust by government of the day, and should, therefore, not at all be deployed for such very selfish end.”
He warned against politics of stomach infrastructure, saying Nigerians have suffered in unprecedented ways since the removal of fuel subsidy by President Bola Tinubu “and do not deserve any politics of use of public assets to be dangled as instrument of coercion for change of political direction by wooed individuals. Such is immoral.”
Corroborating his view, another resident, Mrs. Laraba Lami, said Nigerians should closely monitor how the leaders want to use the properties in the future, adding that residents and Nigerians generally should blow the whistle of accountability once they hear of or notice any untoward or anti-people bent in the process.
“Nigerians,civil society and other accountability and good governance-seeking groups, should watch them closely and, alongside insiders, who are also among average Nigerians, lift the lid loudly, should they notice any untoward or anti-people manner in how the leaders want to put the properties to future use. This is very important to every Nigerian,” she canvassed.