Devt Control stops work on property over tree felling
The Department of Development Control of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has served a stop-work-notice on a property under construction on Lobito Cresent, Wuse II, Abuja. A combined team of the department and the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) also arrested the owner of the property, Mr. Daniel John, for cutting down six trees […]
Satellite Towns Development Department (STDD)
The Department of Development Control of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has served a stop-work-notice on a property under construction on Lobito Cresent, Wuse II, Abuja.
A combined team of the department and the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) also arrested the owner of the property, Mr. Daniel John, for cutting down six trees around the site.
The Director of Development Control, Muktar Galadima, told journalists that apart from felling the trees without permission from the authorities, the developer tweaked and abused the approved building plan.
Galadima further said the architect handling the building project, who aided in committing the offences, had been reported to the Architects Registration Council of Nigeria (ARCON) for appropriate disciplinary action for unprofessional conduct.
He said, “We have just been told that some people are cutting trees in the night; the owners of this building obviously are cutting the trees because they want more visibility for their commercial building. Evidently, we have seen six tree stumps not yet removed.
“We are going to use the FCT Tree Preservation Order and the AEPB Act to prosecute them. We have also marked the building under construction because they have converted the parking lot into shops despite our repeated service of stop-work-notice.”
The Director of AEPB, Baba Shehu Lawal, said the board would not fold its arms while people destroyed trees, adding that they were planted with public funds and nurtured over a period of more than 10 years for the purpose of protecting the environment.
He also warned those dumping construction wastes on Abuja roads to remove them and desist from such illegal practice or incur the wrath of the law.