Wike Directs Arrest Of Man Over Illegal Structures On FCT Land

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has ordered the arrest of Kabiru Sahara for unlawfully taking over a parcel of land and constructing buildings without federal government approval.

According to Ireporter Online, Wike made the disclosure during an inspection tour of ongoing projects in Abuja, revealing that the land in question, located within the Diplomatic Zone, Katampe Extension, was originally allocated on March 18, 2008, to ten embassies for diplomatic residential purposes. A portion of the site was also reserved for the Power Holding Company of Nigeria to construct a 132/133KV power station.

The minister noted that the affected plots were assigned to diplomatic missions including those of Thailand, Bulgaria, Syria, Somalia, Serbia and Montenegro, Japan, Austria, Switzerland, Senegal, and the Palestine Liberation Organisation. He added that the FCT Administration had commenced notifying the embassies to take possession of their allocated plots.

Wike further confirmed that the Department of Development Control had been instructed to remove all unauthorized structures. “This land was allocated to various embassies. Somebody just came here, took the land, and started developing it on his own without approval from the FCDA. We cannot allow this kind of land invasion to continue,” he said.

The minister confirmed that Sahara had been arrested and would face prosecution following police investigations. “The man has been arrested, and he will be charged in court. The police are carrying out their investigations and he will be charged to court any moment from now,” Wike added.

During his inspection, Wike also visited several key infrastructure projects in Abuja, including the redesigned Abuja City Gate, the road linking Bill Clinton Drive of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport to Tunga Madaki community (which will now be extended to Zuba), the road connecting Baze University, Body of Benchers, Nile University, and the Wupa Light Rail Station in Idu Area, as well as the Office Annex for the Body of Benchers.

The minister highlighted that many of these projects, being executed by companies such as Julius Berger Nigeria, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, and Levant Construction, are expected to be completed in time for events marking the third anniversary of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.