? A property owner in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has petitioned the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Bala Mohammed, to intervene in the recent demolition of Plot 155 and Park 1066 Bo2, Durumi, FCT, and has demanded N20m compensation as damages.
The petition, which was signed by Nze Kanayo Chukwumezie, on behalf of the allottee of the plot, Commodore Adejumo A. Balogun, Director of Training, Nigerian Air Force, Air Force Headquarters, alleged petition that the action of the Department of Development Control of the FCDA was “high-handed.”
The petition, dated December 17, 2011, reads in part: “On Tuesday December 6, 2011, a bulldozer from the Development Control came and demolished the entire fence purposely damaging all the iron works. They left the plot sharing fence with me and marked the same day as mine.”
According to him, he had gotten a power of attorney to develop the said plot in 2008 and that prior to that, a legal search was conducted in Abuja Geographical Information System (AGIS) and the allocation letter was not declared fake or forged.
“In 2008, I walled the property and started the process of registering the power of attorney and requesting a site plan and bill for the C of O (certificate of occupancy). The information I got was that they were looking for the hard file of the property and that they will get back to me once that is seen. I checked for almost a year. I kept clearing the area without anybody coming to claim possession or ask who walled it. This year, when the house of a neighbour was burgled, I decided to securely fence it to avoid it being used as a hideout by miscreants.”
Chukwumezie further alleged a certain Amaka had told some people at the site of the plot that she was bent on taking the plot, being a ‘highly connected person in the FCT’.
“Thereafter, Development Control marked the security house in the plot. I was advised to write the Director of the Development Control and attach my allocation letter. I did so on behalf of Balogun.”
He said upon this fulfilment, the authorities of the FCTA ‘came and demolished the entire fence purposely damaging all the iron works. They left the plot near mine which I learnt already belonged to Amaka.”
He called for the restoration of the plot to the bona fide owner and for him to ‘be given N20million to make up for the damages, double standards and high-handedness.’