Kubwa: After the flood, residents face demolition

The Department of Development Control of the Federal Capital Territory, has marked over a hundred houses for demolition in the area for being on the flood plain. Majority of the houses, built very close to a canal which passes through Gado  Nasco road, are flats of two bedroom attachments and boys’ quarters. Some of the […]

The Department of Development Control of the Federal Capital Territory, has marked over a hundred houses for demolition in the area for being on the flood plain. Majority of the houses, built very close to a canal which passes through Gado  Nasco road, are flats of two bedroom attachments and boys’ quarters. Some of the houses had their fences destroyed by the flood.

“If they are demolishing this place, my landlord has to pay me,” says Rose, looking at her kids sleeping on a mattress spread in the sitting room. “But my fear is that the authority could start the demolition by surprise and this means I won’t have a place to keep my children.”

Mrs. Rose is not alone in this agony of demolition. Other residents of the area expressed their disappointment with the government’s decision. Nicholas Okizie, a civil servant, says demolition should not be the best option for government to adopt in their situation.

“We are not illegal occupants here. We bought this place under the monetisation scheme of the Federal Government in 2007,” Okizie said. “Government should not think of demolishing our houses, rather it should construct a restraining wall to prevent flood from coming into our houses in future.”

He said they have taken the issue to court, where they asked the court to restrain the government from destroying their property. “We are asking the court to urge the government to either relocate us to another place, or create a restraining wall to prevent the effects of the flood,” he said.

“But we heard that government is relocating us to a housing estate in Lugbe,” said Mrs Alice John, another resident. “We learnt that the houses originally cost N13 million, it will be given to us at N9 million; but we cannot afford to pay that amount of money, not after we have paid for this place.”

Though the government has decided to relocate them to a new place, a major question most residents ask is who is to pay?  “The best thing is for the government to relocate us there without our paying anything… Government cannot just throw us out without compensating or giving us another place to stay,” Alice said.  

But Mr. Ifeanyi Ughamadu, Head of Public Relations, Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC), said government would neither relocate the affected victims nor compensate them because the agency did not allocate the plots to them.

“People who said they got allocation from the government are not telling the truth. Allocation comes from the FCT minister alone, and there is no way they can be allocated a flood plain. We had Abuja properly planned.

 “When the flood happened in 2006, we marked houses for demolition which we effected later. But after that, people on flood plains started erecting half concrete fences, so that when the water comes it would divert and enter other peoples’ houses, it is those people whom we have marked their houses for demolition,” he says.

As for the houses sold by the FHA, he said some staff of the authority “dubiously allocated plots around the estates. FHA has a prototype building which they are supposed to sell to people. What happens is that latter, some staff of the FHA started carving out plots to individuals to build in the estates. Those are the houses in the flood plains. So we are not relocating anybody. Why should we relocate them when we are not responsible for their ordeal?”

Although Ifeanyi said AMMC has no specific date set to demolish the houses; it will give people enough time to relocate their belongings as required by law.

Weekly Trust learnt that many people have left for the fear of another flood. “I am also leaving soon,” Okizie said. “I can’t allow another flood to meet me here. The flood first took place in 2006, but this year’s own is worse. I don’t know what will happen next year. It could be worse.”