Tenement rate: AMAC seals, reopens Efab metropolis estate

The Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) of the Federal Capital Territory on Friday sealed Efab Metropolis Estate in Karsana District along the Murtala Mohammed expressway, over alleged non-payment of tenement rates, amounting to N600 million since 2022. Abuja Metro learnt that many residents of the estate including serving lawmakers and a retired Supreme Court Justice, […]

The Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) of the Federal Capital Territory on Friday sealed Efab Metropolis Estate in Karsana District along the Murtala Mohammed expressway, over alleged non-payment of tenement rates, amounting to N600 million since 2022.

Abuja Metro learnt that many residents of the estate including serving lawmakers and a retired Supreme Court Justice, were caught in the enforcement exercise, which lasted several hours.

Abuja Metro reports that the council’s officials and security operatives blocked the main entrance to the estate to prevent vehicular movement in and out of the estate.

However, our reporter learnt that the estate was later unsealed following the intervention of some of the notable residents of the estate including the lawmakers.

Normalcy has been restored when Abuja Metro visited the estate Monday morning as there were free human and vehicular movements in and out of the estate.

AMAC’s coordinator of tenement rate, Ambassador Dr. Alewa Akawu Nasiru, said the

council’s constitutional responsibility to enforce compliance would continue while allowing room for negotiation.

He said residents had requested time to resolve the issue.

Retired Justice Paul Adamu Galumje, a resident, urged obedience to judicial rulings, warning that disregard for court orders was unacceptable.

He welcomed the ongoing resolution process and advised both residents and developers to comply with their legal obligations, noting that the situation should serve as a cautionary example for others.

It would be recalled that AMAC and the FCT Administration has been on loggerhead on the issue of tenement rates collection in the territory.

However, the council had reportedly secured a court judgment empowering it to collect the tenement rate within its coverage.