Senate Halts Wike, Blocks FCT Demolitions Pending Investigation

The Nigerian Senate has directed the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to suspend all detivities in the FCT until an ongoing investigation by an ad-hoc committee is concluded.

This resolution followed a motion by Senator Ireti Kingibe, who raised concerns over the scale and process of the demolitions. She highlighted the significant hardship and financial losses faced by individuals due to the large-scale demolitions, which she argued were not consistently adhering to due process.

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Kingibe noted that the demolitions, initially justified as targeting illegal structures or undeveloped plots, had extended to cases with questionable justifications. She cited the example of an estate owned by the late Colonel Paul Osang Kwanwa, allocated to him in 1984 with proper documentation, currently facing demolition.

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While some senators, including Sunday Karimi of Kogi West, opposed halting the demolitions and called for investigations to proceed concurrently, Senate President Godswill Akpabio emphasized the need to prevent further harm before the conclusion of the inquiry. Akpabio cautioned that proceeding with demolitions before thorough investigations could expose the government to legal challenges from affected parties.

The Senate subsequently approved the suspension of demolition activities and constituted an ad-hoc committee, chaired by Senator Jibrin Barau, to investigate the matter comprehensively.

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