Hundreds displaced as FCTA removes Gishiri village extension

By Lateef Taiwo

Hundreds of illegal developments and extensions around Gishiri village within the Katampe District of the Federal Capital City (FCC) have been removed by the demolition squad of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).

The removal is in continuation of the Administration ongoing determination to reclaim encroached plots for the legal owners to take possession.

Officials of the Development Control Department of the FCTA, accompanied by joint security personnel stormed the area with two bulldozers, and pulled down the structures illegally erected inside peoples plots and right of ways, for residential and commercial, including educational and religious purposes.

While some affected decried that they just finished paying their rent barely one week ago, others say the landlords are asking them to pay their rent before their residences were pulled down.

Also, it was observed that the owners of the legally allocated plots have started taking possession of their land by erecting perimeter fences round their respective plots, as they are encouraged to do so by the FCTA.

Explaining the exercise, the District Monitor of Katampe and Mabushi Districts of the FCT, Town Planner, Samson Atureta said it has been ongoing as the extensions are actually on peoples legally allocated plots in the area.

He said: “There are so many illegal developments and the village extensions, that’s why we had to clear them, because these extensions are actually on peoples legally allocated plots.

“So, what we are doing here is to ensure that all those developments that are village extensions are removed, even as we are trying to be careful not to tamper with the houses where indigenes are living in.

“Government might take time, because of procedures, eventually they will get there. So, today is one of those days that they are here. We can’t help it as these extensions have to go, so as to allow the legal owners take possession of ideally allocated plots.”

On whether the people were duly notified prior to the exercise, he said: “Yes, as the District Monitor, I have gotten approval to remove Gishiri more than a year ago, but we were just waiting for the logistics. And we finally got greenlight that we are going to do it, I met the Director, Development Control thal he should permit me to give them another notice. So we just gave final notice, a week before we really started the removal exercise.”

Commenting on the number of structures removed so far, he said: “They are in hundreds, as we can’t really give the actual number now, even though our site officials are working on it, so that we will be able to give proper numbering of houses we have removed. We are counting as we remove them, but I dare say that we have removed hundreds if not a thousand.

“We started about a month or two ago, but because we didn’t have logistics including the security backing, so we have to really arrange for them to come. This is the fourth them we are coming here for the exercise.”

One of the affected persons, Mama Blessing, who runs a drinking joint and resides in the area, laments that: “Even though that we know that they will come and do something like this, at least they would have given us enough time to leave and relocate to another place.

“For me, I’m still looking for a place to relocate, but my appeal to the government is that they should help us relocate to another, as the suffering is too much. We are not rejecting the demolition exercise as we knew that it is government land. But please let them give a time leave, because to suddenly quit is not easy especially when we don’t have another place to go to.”