The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has ordered the demolition of houses and other structures built on designated water channels in Abuja.
Wike issued the directive on Tuesday during a press briefing at his office after inspecting areas affected by flooding in parts of the FCT following heavy rainfall.
The minister said the inspection revealed that some property owners had blocked waterways identified in the Abuja Master Plan as channels for the free flow of water.
Wike said the recent flooding had exposed the dangers posed by such obstructions and warned that structures found to be sitting on designated water channels would be removed.
He said property owners should not assume that structures built on waterways would remain unaffected simply because previous rainfall had not caused flooding in the areas.
According to him, the flooding had brought attention to the affected locations, making it necessary for the FCT Administration to take immediate action.
“I am going to bring those houses down. Any house that falls on the water channel will go down,” Wike said.
He also directed the FCT Development Control Department to take action against structures obstructing waterways, giving the agency until Saturday to carry out the necessary enforcement.
