PDP Blasts Wike As FCTA Moves To Seal Secretariat, Nearly 5,000 Properties

A fresh political storm is brewing in Abuja as the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), under the leadership of Minister Nyesom Wike, prepares to seal the national secretariat of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and 4,793 other properties over unpaid ground rent. The enforcement operation is scheduled to commence on Monday, May 26.

During a joint media briefing in Abuja, Lere Olayinka, the Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications to the FCT Minister, alongside Directors of Land Administration and Development Control, Chijioke Nwankwoeze and Mukhtar Galadima, addressed the looming enforcement.

Olayinka stated, “Ownership of the revoked 4,794 properties in Central Area, Garki, Wuse, Asokoro, Maitama and Guzape districts has reverted to the FCTA. From Monday, the government will begin to exercise its rights of ownership without consideration of prior ownership.”

He added that the affected properties would be locked up, restricting access while future plans for the sites would be determined later.

According to Nwankwoeze, no court has issued an injunction halting the FCTA’s planned action, clarifying that the government remains within its legal rights to enforce the revocation. He explained that the crackdown targets titleholders who have failed to meet their annual ground rent obligations for periods ranging from one to ten years. A 21-day window was previously given for defaulters to clear their debts before enforcement would begin.

Among the buildings marked for sealing is the PDP’s longstanding headquarters at Wadata Plaza and a new secretariat under construction in Abuja’s Central Area. Nwankwoeze explained, “The property currently occupied by the PDP in Wadata Plaza does not belong to the party but to one Samaila Mamang Ofu. The revocation notice was served on him, not on the PDP as occupants.”

He disclosed that several other government institutions, including the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigerian Postal Authority, and NNPC, are also affected by the revocation.

Olayinka further stressed that ground rent payment is a legal requirement stipulated in land occupancy agreements and must be paid annually without exception. He maintained that the enforcement was a matter of law and compliance, not politics, and was aimed strictly at titleholders, irrespective of current occupants.

In a swift response, the PDP condemned the FCTA’s decision, labeling it an abuse of power and an attempt to silence dissent. The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, accused Wike of using state authority to stifle opposition voices.

Ologunagba declared, “Both the Wadata Plaza, where we have operated for nearly two decades, and the new secretariat under construction have had their Right of Occupancy revoked. This is a deliberate attempt to silence opposition voices.”

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