Why we stopped allocation of land in Abuja – FCT minister

The minister, while fielding questions from journalists on Thursday also explained why his administration stopped further allocation of land in the Nigerian capital He said FCT is grappling with a situation where plots in the past were allocated in a manner that outstripped the capacity of the administration to provide infrastructure. He said beneficiaries commenced development under the pressure for accommodation “Today we have houses built on spaces earmarked for roads, natural water-ways, public utility lines and so on. We are grappling with a situation where plots were allocated in a manner that outstripped the capacity of the administration to provide infrastructure.” Similarly, the minister of FCT also invited investors to take advantage of the business opportunities that would be offered by the completion of the FCT Light Rails Mass Transit System. Mr. Bello said the entire rail transit corridor offers an array of business opportunities for restaurants, parking lots and shopping malls. According to him, the large swathe of space on the rail line corridors contains 12 stations, including the central metro station near the World Trade Centre in the Central Business District. He said he hoped the network would substantially increase economic activities in the FCT. When asked why there had been no land allocation since he took office, Mr. Bello linked it to abuse of the land acquisition processes in the past. He said that almost all the land within the city had been allocated except for ‘Phase 5.’ On street lighting, Mr. Bello explained that the FCT was contending with the spate of vandalisation of public utilities by criminals. He said the capital has 300km of streetlights and at one pole per 10 meters distance, the city had over 3000 poles. ”These require a massive amount of resources to power and to protect. “FCTA has paid off all confirmed bills it inherited and has ensured that all power consumed by the administration is metered to ensure appropriate billing,” he added. “The administration is making arrangements for an off-grid solution to the perennial challenge of street lighting in the FCT and consequently the administration is looking the way of solar panels and generators as back-up for power during off-grid times. “Our next attention is to the satellite towns. Work is now going on the Dutse Alhaji – Kubwa road, Karu Township infrastructure – for which the National Executive Council has approved N2.6 billion; as well as the Karshi – Apo roads among others,” he said.]]>