The Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC) has begun demolition of illegal structures in Guzape District, following the arrest of a developer for encroaching on green areas and converting waterways into residential plots in violation of the Abuja Master Plan.
The developer, identified as Kadiri Ogbaidi of Citiscape Villa, was accused of flouting development approvals by selling government-reserved plots to unsuspecting subscribers.
AMMC Coordinator, Chief Felix Obuah, who led a high-powered enforcement team to the site on Monday, described the infractions as deliberate sabotage of the Federal Capital Territory’s planning regulations. He warned that the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, has zero tolerance for such abuses and is determined to restore order in the city.
“The developer clearly violated the approval granted by the Department of Development Control. He encroached on green areas and waterways, and we are here to enforce the law,” Obuah said while supervising the demolition exercise.
Obuah also revealed that a foreign firm had illegally taken over more green areas in Utako and vowed that AMMC will recover all encroached lands across the territory. He warned that any civil servant found to have colluded with developers in illegal allocations would be sanctioned in line with extant public service rules.
The Director of the Department of Development Control, Mukhtar Galadima, confirmed that the developer ignored multiple stop-work notices before AMMC moved in with enforcement. He said the department has ramped up monitoring to curb similar infractions across the city.
In a show of remorse, Kadiri Ogbaidi admitted to the violations and pleaded for two weeks to remove all illegal structures at his own cost.
“There have been many infractions here, mostly from our subscribers, but we take responsibility. We will remove every structure and revert to the original approval,” he said.
AMMC granted the request but warned that enforcement would resume if the illegal structures are not cleared within the grace period.
