By Eunice Orike
The Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, has announced that it will not extend the January 3rd deadline for payment of ground rent, Certificate of Occupancy (C of O), and Right of Occupancy (R of O) for allottees whose plots and names were recently published.
Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike who said this when he visited when he inspected some ongoing projects like the 10-lane 15-kilometre Apo-Wasa road, the Court of Appeal Complex in Jabi District and the Saburi – Dei Dei road in Abuja, emphasized that the administration’s goal is not to reclaim the lands but to collect payment for the development of Abuja.
Wike stated that the allocations were made over 10 years ago, and it’s time for allottees to comply and pay.
According to the Minister, “Well, as far as I am concerned, these things were done before we came on board, and what the Land Department and the AGIS did was to generate from the system.
“First of all, if you have paid, it means that you would have collected your C of O. R of O is like an allocation of land where you go and pay for your C of O. So, when you don’t have the C of O, it means that you have not paid. So, I don’t want to join issues with the Speaker or whatever.
But the point is that if there are people who have paid, like some people say they have paid and they have attached their receipt to show that they have paid. In such cases, yes, there’d be a remedy”, he said.
He noted that Abuja relies heavily on property tax for development, and the funds collected will be used for projects such as road construction.
“If you’re an allottee who hasn’t paid yet, it’s essential to take action immediately. After the deadline, the FCTA will reallocate the lands to other interested parties”, he said.
Wike emphasized that the FCTA’s focus is on developing Abuja, and the funds collected from allottees will be used to achieve this goal.
He noted that the administration has been fair by giving allottees ample time to comply.
“So we have been able to do justice by making sure that people are going to abide and comply. Our interest is not to have the lands back; our interest is for them to pay so we can use the fund for the development of the FCT.
Now, we are talking about roads. How will you get the roads done without people complying and paying? So, we will not. I don’t think we will want to give another date of grace. After it expires, we will reallocate all those lands to other people who are interested”, he said.
