FCTA to demolish illegal settlements, shanties

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) is set to remove all illegal settlements and shanties in the nation’s capital to curb insecurity.

As part of the exercise, the Department of Development Control of the FCTA has directed officers to submit a list of all shanties and informal settlements for a verification exercise.

The department said the goal was to identify and address shanties and informal settlements that might harbour criminal activities.

Mr Mukhtar Galadima, the Director of the Development Control, made this known during the removal of shanties and shops in Durumi 1.

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He said the move was part of the administration’s broader strategy to enhance security and orderly development within the FCT.

He said, “Looking at the rising insecurity in the FCT, we were mandated to clear all shanties and squatter settlements in the Federal Capital Territory.  So, this is in line with the directive given by the FCT Administration.

“The exercise is not limited to the city centre, we are going beyond the city centre, but we have a line of direction that is why we are starting from the city centre outward.

“Where we are clearing now is the continuation of the bMoshood Abiola Way which starts from the International Conference Centre and runs through Area 10, Area 2 down to Durumi going to Games Village.  You can see this is a road stretch known as Festival Road then.

“The new strategy is that once we clear the place, we handover to a responsible agency, if they fail to do their responsibility then they should be blamed, not Development Control or the task force.”