The FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, has clarified the FCT Administration’s decision to revoke land allocations at the Abuja Technology Village, stating that the move was essential to pave the way for the ambitious Abuja City Walk project, modeled after the renowned Dubai City Walk.
Speaking during his monthly media chat in Abuja on Monday, Wike said the supposed investors of the Abuja Technology Village had failed to develop the site as per the agreement entered with the government. Instead, the minister alleged, they were engaged in land-grabbing activities.
He said, ‘The FCTA provided the infrastructure for more than 20 years, and nothing has been done. If you go there, they have rented out the place. You will see where NNPC tankers are parked, and they collect money. So many people are now claiming to have C of Os. I said okay, I must resolve this problem. There is nothing called Abuja Technology Village’, Wike asserted.
He expressed regret that despite the FCT Administration providing necessary infrastructure for over two decades, developers had not laid a single foundation stone and were instead leasing out the land for financial gain.
Providing insight into the proposed Abuja City Walk, for which an MOU was recently signed with a private investor, the minister explained that he was inspired by the development at the Dubai City Walk during his visit to the Gulf city.
He reaffirmed the government’s desire to provide world-class infrastructure of international standard.
Addressing efforts to mitigate land grabbing by unscrupulous investors, the minister announced a policy shift introducing clear timelines for development. ‘Land not developed within the stipulated period will revert to the FCTA’, he said.
The minister also addressed the controversy surrounding the revoked land at the University of Abuja, asserting that the institution had occupied the land for many years without development. He maintained that the 4,000 hectares remaining for the university was more than adequate, dismissing claims that a significant portion consisted of rocks.
He highlighted that development activities, including the EFCC academy, are now springing up on the reallocated land.
On the newly renovated conference centre, Barr. Wike revealed that barely a month after its reopening, the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, has already generated over N1.2 billion in revenue for the government, a significant increase in revenue compared to the N50 million annually remitted by the centre’s previous managers.
