Terms, Conditions Must Apply In Land Allocation- Wike

By Remi Johnson

FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, has given an indication that terms and conditions must apply to the issue of land allocation in the territory going forward.

Wike gave this indication when he received a delegation of the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS, that paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja.

The Minister who turned down the appeal of the Nigerian Customs Service to reclaim it’s revoked land, explained that revocation of land was part of penalties for any agency that failed to develop its allocation within the expected time frame.

He noted that land will only be allocated to agencies or groups that are ready to develop the plot of land within the shortest possible time.

The Minister who expressed dissatisfaction over the failure of the Nigerian Customs to develop the revoked land all this while, emphasized that ground rent must be paid when the certificate of ownership of the land is reissued.

“My policy now is that before we give land to any agency, it must commit that it will develop the land within a certain number of years, and if not, the FCT should take back the land. I will not allocate land that will lay till thy kingdom come.Frankly speaking, we’ll look at it and see what we can do. Whether you are going to pay a penalty, you’ll pay a penalty. That is what we are going to do”, Wike said

On the request for land to build a school for NCS children, the FCT Minister urged the leadership of the Custom Service to apply for it, even as he warned that the approval will be subject to their readiness and commitment to begin development on the said plot immediately.

“Be rest assured that I am going to approve the land for the school. You bring the application; I will sign it and give it to the Director of Lands to give you the land that you can use. Schools are very important. It is not only the children of customs officers that will attend the schools.So, you must convince me that you are indeed serious about building schools for the children of your staff and our children”.

He added that the approval would be on the condition that the Custom boss, agrees to pay the ground rent as and when due, adding that there would be no given notice for the payment of ground rents.

Earlier, the Acting Comptroller General of the NCS, Bashir Adeniyi, said the purpose of the visit was to congratulate Wike on his appointment as FCT Minister, and his achievements so far.

He however solicited for land to build primary and secondary school for the over 2000 Custom officers children thst do not have access to public schools.

Edited By Grace Namiji