- Abuja residents and human rights activists, including Deji Adeyanju, gathered to protest against land grabs in poor communities
- Activists argued that Wike’s land policies would exacerbate insecurity and further marginalise the poor
- Protesters demanded that President Bola Tinubu intervene to stop the ongoing land seizures and relocations
Residents who feel wronged, along with human rights advocates, expressed their outrage over the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) administration's actions under Wike's leadership, accusing it of land grabs in poor communities.
Deji Adeyanju, a lawyer and human rights activist, joined the FCT residents in a protest on Friday, November 8, where they called on President Bola Tinubu to intervene and stop the FCT minister’s policies that are uprooting hundreds of families from their homes.
Adeyanju criticises Wike for targeting poor areas for land grabs
Deji Adeyanju said Wike’s “land grabbing policies will further exacerbate insecurity in the Federal Capital Territory”.
He further said, “They are dismayed and they are worried that efforts to grab this land are more pressing and it is more unrelenting. Just like we have said earlier, we are appealing to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to prevail on the FCT minister to release poor people's lands to them. Poor people's lands belong to the poor people.
“If they are badly in need of land to grab, they should go to Asokoro, Maitama Extension, and Guzape. There are many places to grab land. Why will you come to the poor to grab land so that you can give it to the rich? It will increase insecurity in the country.”
VeryDarkMan slams land policies in FCT, urges fair treatment
Martins Vincent Otse, better known as VeryDarkMan, a well-known social media influencer, expressed his concern over the injustice faced by poor FCT residents whose land has been appropriated by Wike's administration.
Otse said, “In this bad economy, with the price of dollars, with the price of foodstuffs, and you did not create a place for them to stay. This is craziness, wickedness and it is not fair. This act will cause a very great insecurity.”
FG issues 60-day deadline for titled property owners to settle outstanding payments or lose C of O
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that the Federal Government imposed a 60-day deadline for owners of titled properties across the nation to settle any unpaid ground rent and statutory charges, or risk losing their Certificates of Occupancy (C of O).
Minister Musa Dangiwa emphasised the critical role of these funds in national development.