By Abdullahi Muhammad, Abuja
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) on Tuesday, demolished illegal shanties of suspected criminal elements, restaurants, car wash, in Gwarinpa District.
Senior Special Assistant on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement to FCT Minister, Ikharo Attah who led the team lamented that the administration is concerned about the way people spend hard earned money to build illegal structures on road corridors.
According to him, “This is part of our ongoing cleanup in Gwarinpa district; there are so many illegalities, ungoverned space, inappropriate development, criminal hideouts in the area.
“This is part of reclaiming road 69 and we are discovering more and more things we have never seen. Nobody would ever believe people are living here. We also discovered that every single one whose house is close to this road corridor is blocking their windows so that people cannot come into their houses, many are increasing their fences so that criminals cannot jump in. Where would people build large structures without any approval and spend so much money? It is very painful here but we need to keep Abuja clean and safe for everyone. The Minister has given a matching order to go and do our jobs and we must go out daily to do this”.
“So many shanties, illegal restaurants, mechanic workshops etc”, she said.
On arrest of a suspect with drugs, he noted,”it is a normal thing to discover drugs in this type of society, people are arrested for possession of illicit drugs, what they cannot do in sane society , they do here, because they have cover .
On sustainability, he said there is no going back on ridding Abuja of illegalities.
Bashiru Yahaya, one of the residents in the shanties, lamented that, they are less privileged and it is poverty that made him build a shanty.
“It was condition that made us to build shanties. It is because of poverty,we are not happy leaving here”, he said.