The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has launched an investigation into the recent flooding along the Airport Road corridor and Lokogoma District of the territory.
FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, who made this known during a media chat yesterday, also warned that structures obstructing waterways and violating the Abuja Master Plan will be demolished.
He said that a high-level team comprising the Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) and the Director of Development Control are already assessing the affected areas.
The investigation, he added, would cover communities along the Airport Road, including Lugbe and Lokogoma.
Wike said the FCDA would determine whether the flooding was caused by natural factors or human activities, stressing that man-made causes would be addressed.
His words: ‘When I heard of the incident, the Executive Secretary of the FCDA and the Director, Development Control had to go to the place, not only at the Airport Road but also in Lokogoma.
‘ it is something that we have to investigate.’
The minister acknowledged that the recent downpour in the FCT had been unusually heavy but said preliminary findings indicated that violations of the Abuja Master Plan might have worsened the flooding.
He accused residents and developers of erecting structures without approval and blocking natural waterways and designated road corridors, particularly in Lugbe.
Wike vowed that the FCTA would strictly enforce the Abuja Master Plan and pull down any structure found to have been built along waterways.
He said: ‘From our studies, Lugbe has always been violating the Abuja Masterplan. All over the years, you see people building without approval and blocking where there is supposed to be a roadway.
‘As an administration, we are not taking it lightly.’
The minister also revealed that the administration was also taking disciplinary measures against officials found to have aided illegal development and encroachment on green areas and waterways.
According to him, a director in the administration was recently suspended in line with civil service rules for allegedly issuing unauthorised temporary approvals to commercial operators on designated green areas.
He said another official was also sanctioned for allegedly reallocating park lands under the guise of security clearing.
Wike dismissed claims that some structures marked for demolition had been legitimately approved by previous administrations, insisting that approvals obtained through influence or granted contrary to government policy would not protect illegal developments.
‘You got approval to do something wrong. Sometimes, it is under influence.
‘Government policy is that nobody should do anything on green areas. Now you go with the spirit that nothing will happen, and then when we come to enforce, you say you have approval. It is not going to be accepted,’ he said.
The minister also assured residents that ongoing projects awarded by the current administration, as well as inherited projects, would be completed before the expiration of the administration’s tenure.
Wike said 76 out of the 107 road projects awarded under the administration of President Bola Tinubu in the FCT had been completed.
He added that 10 others were scheduled for completion ahead of the forthcoming elections.
According to him, the administration has also completed 23 out of the 25 projects inherited from the Muhammadu Buhari administration and six out of the eight projects inherited from the Goodluck Jonathan administration.
He said several abandoned projects dating back to the Olusegun Obasanjo administration had also been revived and completed.
The minister also defended the removal of fuel subsidy, saying Nigerians should demand accountability from state and local governments on how the increased allocations accruing to them are used.
He said the appropriate question was not whether subsidy should be restored but how the proceeds from its removal were being utilised.
The minister questioned the position of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar on the restoration of fuel subsidy, saying his views could not be relied upon.
On Rivers State politics, the minister said he remained actively involved in efforts to maintain political stability and sustain his grassroots political structure.
He said major political actors in the state had aligned under what he described as a ‘Rainbow Coalition’ in support of President Tinubu.
The minister expressed confidence that the opposition would be unable to mount a united challenge in future elections.