The Federal Capital Territory Administration has launched an investigation into the flooding that recently affected parts of the Airport Road axis and Lokogoma, with Minister Nyesom Wike, vowing to demolish structures found to have been erected on waterways or in violation of the Abuja masterplan.
Wike said the investigation would determine whether the flooding was caused by natural factors or human activities, particularly illegal developments that may have obstructed waterways and designated road corridors.
The minister disclosed this on Wednesday during a media chat in Abuja, saying he had directed the Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Development Authority and the Director of Development Control to inspect the affected areas, including Lugbe and Lokogoma.
“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,” Wike said.
“The one that is man-made, we can solve the problem; the one that is natural, there is nothing we can do—it becomes a natural disaster. So, it’s something that we have to investigate.”
Wike said preliminary findings indicated that years of disregard for the Abuja masterplan had contributed to the problem, particularly in Lugbe, where he alleged that buildings had been erected without proper approval and road corridors and waterways obstructed.
“From our studies, Lugbe has always been violating the Abuja masterplan. All over the years, you see people building without approval and blocking where is supposed to be a roadway. As an administration, we are not taking it lightly,” he said.
The minister warned that the FCTA would not allow structures built on waterways to remain, regardless of when or how the developers obtained approval.
He said the administration would also scrutinise approvals granted for developments on protected green areas and other locations prohibited under the FCT masterplan.
“You got approval to do something wrong… sometimes, it’s 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,” Wike said.
The minister also disclosed that the FCTA had begun sanctioning officials allegedly involved in facilitating illegal developments in the territory.
According to him, a director was recently suspended under civil service rules for issuing unauthorised temporary approvals to commercial operators on designated green areas, while another official was sanctioned for allegedly reallocating park land under the guise of security clearance.
Wike said the administration would continue to enforce the Abuja masterplan irrespective of the status of individuals or officials involved in illegal developments.
The minister also disclosed that 76 of the 107 road projects awarded by the administration of President Bola Tinubu in the FCT had been completed, with 10 others expected to be completed before the forthcoming elections.
He said the FCTA had also completed 23 of the 25 projects inherited from the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari and six of the eight projects inherited from the Goodluck Jonathan administration.
Wike said the administration had also addressed some abandoned projects dating back to the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
“For the first time in the history of the FCT since 1999, no administration has awarded that number of projects and completed them,” he said.
The minister said the records of the projects and their implementation had been made available through national television networks.
Wike also defended the Federal Government’s removal of the petrol subsidy, saying the increased revenues accruing to state and local governments should translate into improved services and infrastructure for citizens.
He challenged state governments to account for the additional funds they had received following the reform.
Responding to recent comments by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar on the possibility of restoring the subsidy, Wike said the more important question should be what governments had done with the revenue gains from its removal.
“All you should have asked was: having removed subsidy, what did you do with the gains of it? The government has come to say the gains were shared among the subnational governments.
“Today, the states are paying salaries and pensions unlike before. Today, I can go on with projects. Today, the universities are going on without strikes. Having done that, it is now for states to account for what they have done with the money,” he said.
He cited the revival of the Abuja rail mass transit system and ongoing expansion of the FCT road network as examples of projects being implemented amid the reforms.
The minister also paid tribute to his late political associate, Chief Dan Orbih, describing him as a principled politician who remained firm despite political pressure.
“Dan Orbih stood very firm in spite of pressure. That’s why I tell people that if you really know what you are doing and you are committed, no amount of pressure can sway you,” Wike said.
He recalled visiting Orbih at the London Clinic after the late politician informed him that he was travelling for medical treatment.
“Before he died, he came to see me and informed me that he would be travelling for medical reasons. I went to the London Clinic to see him and I never thought that this will happen. We cannot question God, but I don’t know whether I can really recover from it,” he said.
Wike also spoke about his political activities in Rivers State, saying major political actors in the state had come together under what he described as a “Rainbow Coalition” in support of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
He dismissed the likelihood of a fragmented opposition posing a serious political challenge in the state ahead of the next elections.
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