The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has defended the demolition of properties in the nation’s capital, stating that he will not be influenced by blackmail.
Wike emphasized that the structures being demolished by the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) were illegally constructed on government-owned land.
“Let me use this opportunity to tell Nigerians and residents of Abuja, we are not afraid of blackmailing,” the minister said during the distribution of operational vehicles to security agencies at the FCTA Secretariat in Abuja on Thursday.
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“In fact, you cannot be in this kind of position and say you cannot be blackmailed particularly as regards this Abuja. There are so many land grabbers. Some of us have come to put our feet down. Let heaven fall. It is even better that heaven comes down now so that we would not be fasting again to go to heaven.”
In recent months, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has ramped up the demolition of structures it considers illegal in estates and informal settlements across Abuja.
Wike stated that while some of these buildings present security concerns, the majority have been constructed on government-owned land.
This initiative has sparked protests and backlash, but Wike has remained firm, asserting that there will be no reversal and promising to target more illegally built structures and shanties.
“We would stop anybody who thinks they will take government land for whatever reason with formal approval. We would not look at your face. If you like be a civil rights activist or a television personality,” Wike, the immediate past governor of Rivers State, said during the event.
“What is wrong is wrong; no amount of blackmail can stop us. People take government property without approval or documentation.”
Wike’s comment coincided with the Senate’s decision to initiate an investigation into the demolitions in the FCT, with a committee established to examine the issue.
The Senate’s action came after a motion was introduced by Senator Ireti Kingibe, who represents the FCT. She expressed concerns about the demolitions and called for an immediate halt to the actions.
The Senate then formed an investigative committee to look into the demolitions, with plans to invite Wike to explain the reasons behind the actions in the nation’s capital.
The committee will be chaired by Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin.
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