FCTA Demolishes Car Park, Vows to Preserve Abuja Master Plan

By: Wisdom Acka

Authorities of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) have vowed not to relent in its efforts to rid the Abuja Master Plan of all abuses and maintain its sanctity.

An operation staff of the Department of Development Control, Chinedu Okoro, disclosed this to journalists, when he led the Department’s demolition squad to pull down a residential structure in Apo District on Monday.

Okoro revealed that owner of the demolished residential property on plot 661 (B01) Gudu District, in Apo was actually granted building plan approval by the Development Control Department, but the approval was for the development of a multi-level car park, which was converted to a residential purpose without recourse to the department.

He berated that such unilateral decisions to make changes on Land Use were tantamount to causing serious distortions to the dictates of the Abuja Master Plan.

Okoro stated that his department had, before the exercise, served several notices before finally pulling the structure down for Land Use contravention, even as he advised developers in the FCT to always comply with development control regulations, building plan approvals and notices served on their structures.

He warned that failure to develop in compliance with the laws would attract penalties, including demolition, and making the developers to bear the cost of demolition.

His words: “The Department of Development Control is resolute in ensuring that the Master Plan of the Federal Capital Territory is preserved by all developers in the FCT”.