Development Control demolishes school, garage in Games Village

Millions of naira is said to have been lost after officials of Development Control demolished a private school and auto mechanic workshop in Games Village, Abuja.  The school’s library, laboratory and classrooms were pulled down with air conditioners, laboratory equipment and other facilities damaged.  The chairman of the Board of Trustees of Games Village Residents […]

Millions of naira is said to have been lost after officials of Development Control demolished a private school and auto mechanic workshop in Games Village, Abuja. 

The school’s library, laboratory and classrooms were pulled down with air conditioners, laboratory equipment and other facilities damaged. 

The chairman of the Board of Trustees of Games Village Residents Association, Abuja, Abdullah Yahya, said they were surprised by the demolition as the association was already negotiating with the government on how to amicably resolve the issue, and there was a court order restraining the government from carrying out the exercise. 

“Officials of Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC) Development Control as instructed by the coordinator came into the Games Village Estate to carry out the demolition of Deo Gratias School and Motorhaul despite a subsisting injunction from the FCT High Court. 

“The destruction could be well over N500 million. This act of demolition is not in tandem with the tenets of civilised society and is condemnable,” he said. 

Yahya said the association was hoping to get the understanding of the authority and resolve the matter amicably but that despite the court order they still demolished the property. 

“We feel as law-abiding citizens we do not have power to allocate land to ourselves but we also believe we have constitutional rights. We were not asking for anything but to seek dialogue with the authority on how we can still resolve the matter amicably,” he explained. 

The coordinator of Abuja Metropolitan Management Council, Umar Shuaibu, said the plot of land accommodating the said school was allocated to the council during the El-Rufai administration, adding that the government has not erred in demolishing the property. 

“Those structures were offices built by the Chinese companies; they were not his (school owner’s) structures except if he added illegal structures. 

“Who gave him approval, where is his title document? Where is his Development Control approval? All these are very important documents,” he said. 

He however said there are areas the government and the association can work together to amicably resolve the issue.