The House of Representatives has initiated an investigation into the purportedly illicit distribution of lands just prior to Nyesom Wike’s appointment in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
News About Nigeria reports that the House directed its FCT committee to look into all of the allocations made between January 1st and August 27th, when Wike resumed office.
Jonathan Gaza made a motion at the plenary on Thursday, and it was followed by this resolution.
In the motion, Gaza explained that between May 29th, when former Minister Mohammed Bello resigned, and when Wike resumed office, some officials in the ministry approved lands for estate developers.
He stated that the lands were assigned without the approval of a substantive minister in the ministry.
“In the period from May 29th, 2023, to August 21st, 2023, several title documents on land in the FCT were issued to some real estate developers in a highly suspicious manner.”
“[We] wonder if the Director of Lands or any official of the FCDA who issued R of O’s purportedly in the name of the Minister of FCT at the period when the office of the Minister was vacant had the legal right or authority to do so,” he said.
He added that “some of the beneficiaries of these alleged fraudulent allocations are already using them to forcibly grab disputed land, which is a recipe for conflicts.”
The motion was adopted unanimously when it was put to a vote by the presiding officer, Ben Kalu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.
