The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), on Friday in Abuja directed owners of undeveloped plots of land at Apo-Dutse Scrap Market to immediately commence development or risk revocation.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the popular Scrap( Panteka) market, with over 4,000 demolished shanties, had operated for several years, and illegally occupying a large expanse of land within a residential district.
Mr Ikharo Attah, Senior Special Assistant on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement to the FCT Minister, said owners of undeveloped plots should immediately proceed to the Department of Development Control to get their building plan approval and commence development.
He warned that the FCT Administration would have no option than to revoke the titles to the plots, if the owners failed to take over the reclaimed lands.
Attah said that the place had been infiltrated by all manners of dangerous criminals, hence the need to demolish it, adding it was regrettable that original allottees had kept the land with the intentions to make more money.
The minister’s aide advised those interested in ‘Panteka’ business to move to Gosa Dumpsites, and not relocate to other illegal places.
” I will like to use this medium to notify plot owners within this area to report themselves immediately to Development Control to obtain building plan approval and commence building on their plots of land.
” If they fail to do so we will be left with no option, but to write and recommend to the FCT Minister for the revocation of all land titles, because we cannot suffer in vain clearing this place for this numbers of days, and the owners will sit down to speculate, waiting for when they will make big money.
” What we are telling them is that the owners of this expanse of land housing the Apo-Dutse Pantaker should commence development or it will be revoked and given to those who are ready to develop.
” We have advised the operators of ‘Panteka’ to move to Gosa Dumpsites as they keep going to the wrong places; we will continue to go after them.
” To avoid criminalities in the scrap market, we have also advised them to move to the permanent site and develop internal mechanisms to stop criminals from infiltrating them,”he added. (NAN)
