By Ismaila Jimoh, Abuja
Due to the ongoing construction of Arterial road N16 in Katampe District of Abuja which affected numbers of building obstructing the project in Gishiri village, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Barr. Nyesom Wike has ordered the officials of Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) to allocate a new land to the affected residents within one-week.
Wike gave this directive while addressing the affected persons at the community on Wednesday in Abuja.
Before now, stakeholders from Gishiri village had met with the Minister, where he expressed his displeasure over the reports presented to him by officials of FCDA and Gishiri victims, and promised to visit the community for assessment.
During the visit, the Minister also asked the Director of Department of Resettlement and Compensation, Nasiru Suleiman to pay compensation to the victims of demolition within one-week.
He called on those whose buildings were pulled down by the road project to accept the monetary part of the compensation before the land.
“If you don’t take the money, I’ll not give you people the land again. Go and collect the money. So as you take the land, you start developing it, if I hear that you did not take it, I would not also give you the land and you would be the one that’ will suffer it”
Wike had earlier said the initial compensation budget of N655m was increased to N1.3bn due to the economic situation in the country.
He clarified that the compensation rates were determined by government valuation standards and assured that due process should be followed to ensure fairness and transparency.
The victims claimed that they were given a an area covered by water which they said would not be good for habitation, insisting that they should be given the land behind the Local Education Authority (LEA) Primary School, Gishiri.
