FCTA dislodges roadside artisans, building materials dealers in Abuja

For allegedly encroaching on road corridors and constituting a public nuisance, Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) city management officials raided and dislodged artisans and building materials dealers in their hundreds from major streets, in the Karmo District of Abuja, the nation’s capital city.

In particular, the FCTA officials, backed by security personnel from the Nigeria Police and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), at the weekend dismantled shanties and removed items such as furniture and scaffolds, ladders amongst others in the area.

It was observed that most of the affected artisans and traders were those hitherto operating in makeshift structures, mainly containers and batchers attached to the perimeter fence of Babangida Estate, near Nizanya Hospital, Karimo District.

Also affected were a cluster of roadside traders on the stretch of a major road corridor linking the District with the Idu Railway Station and the Junction along the busy Jabi/Airport road.

Explaining the operation, Director, Department of Development Control, Murktar Usman Galadima, said it was part of its recently revived weekend clean-up exercise, aimed at clearing shanties and sanitising the city.

Galadima, who described as unacceptable, the conversion of major road corridors into trading and other auxiliary activities, insisted that the department in collaboration with other sister agencies will not relent on the reinvigorated effort to enforce orderliness in the city.

He said: “When you go round, you will see that where the government has spent so much amount of money to provide infrastructure, then non-concerned citizens will go defacing such with some trading activities.

“Following the outbreak of COVID-19, a lot of things stopped (pulsed), so, even our weekend activities were stopped, but now we are reviving it. Prior to that, mostly, during the weekend we used to go round and evacuate construction waste and other things.

“We restarted last week, in Kafe District, and this week, we were at Karmo District. So, we see the operation as an opportunity to clear the trees as well as remove those traders and artisans from the road corridor. It is not that we don’t appreciate what they are doing, but that is not the best (designated) place for such activities”. He stated.

In a related development officials of the FCTA on Monday stormed the Gishiri community, within the neighbourhood of Maitama District, demolishing all illegal shelters of suspected criminal elements.

Senior Special Assistant on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement to FCT Minister, Ikharo Attah who led the team said while the administration will not stop Nigerians to migrate and live in Abuja but illegal structures can’t be allowed to deface the city.

He said: “The influx of people are responsible for the increasing shanties, they are even taking over the streets. People who come to Abuja can stay in the suburb than come to places where they live under trees, and bridges everywhere. We won’t condone that.

“We are carrying out this exercise because we got a lot of complaints over the weekend. And as you can see, shanties have started springing up from the community up to the Maitama junction.

“That is why we had to quickly come and clear them because they serve as safe haven to criminals. Criminals hang around in these shanties to attack the neighbourhood.” He stated.

Also speaking, the Assistant Director of Enforcement in Abuja Environmental Protection Board, Kaka Bello said the shanties in Gishiri had been demolished several times, but deviant people continue to erect more.

Bello stated that the enforcement won’t be stopped until people begin to respect the rules of the city.

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