Severe flooding and years of encroachment on Abuja’s green spaces have forced the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) to draw a hard line. According to a press release from Rabi Musa Umar, Deputy Director, Press, Office Of the Hon. Minister within the week, FCT Minister, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, has announced a major expansion of ongoing demolitions of illegal structures built on drainage channels, saying the exercise will move beyond Maitama District to cover the entire territory. The move, he said, is part of a broader strategy to restore the Abuja master plan, free natural waterways, and reclaim public parks now being used as car dealerships, writes Ekuson Nw’Ogbunka in Abuja over the weekend.
Speaking during a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, the Minister said the administration’s enforcement drive will be unrelenting and without exceptions, no matter who is affected. The briefing came after an extensive inspection tour of major infrastructure projects across the Federal Capital Territory, where the Minister assessed progress on roads and access routes critical to the city’s growth.
“We just started somewhere. After that, we will move to another area. We are not going to end where we started yesterday. We are very serious and I can tell you that we are not going back. It doesn’t matter who is affected,” Minister Wike declared. He linked the demolitions directly to the flooding being experienced in parts of the capital, arguing that blocking natural waterways has created avoidable risks to lives and property.
Dismissing criticism that due process was not followed before the demolitions, Wike insisted that the real breach of due process was allowing construction on drainage channels in the first place.
“You went to block a water channel, is that due process? I’m the one following due process to make sure the right thing is being done… By the time we remove those structures that block the water channel, there will be free flow of water to where it is supposed to be,” he said.
Beyond clearing waterways, the Minister announced an immediate, territory-wide ban on the unauthorized conversion of public recreational zones, green spaces, and parks into commercial ventures. He specifically cited areas surrounding the Millennium Park, where green areas have increasingly been turned into car dealerships and parking ports, as a target of the new enforcement.
“You can imagine, everywhere you have green areas, you have carports now. So, I’ve already stopped it, and I’ve set up a task force to make sure that every car dealer is moved out of the green areas,” Wike stated.
The Minister was emphatic that businesses must operate in designated commercial areas, not in spaces meant for recreation and environmental protection. “If you want to sell your car, you go and purchase somewhere and then develop it. Not where you see green,” he added.
To drive compliance, the FCTA has established a dedicated Task Force to clear all unauthorized auto dealers from green zones and ensure the parks are restored to public use.
In a related move, the FCT Head of Service, Nancy Sabanti Nathan, has summoned key directors for questioning. Those affected include officials overseeing Parks and Recreation, Environmental Protection, Traffic Management, and Urban and Regional Planning, over allegations of illegal approvals issued to car dealers.
Providing updates on infrastructure, Wike expressed satisfaction with the progress and quality of work on several high-capital projects inspected during the tour. The projects include the extension of the access road from Tungan Madaki community near the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport to Zuba, the road extension from the Body of Benchers to Ring Road III, and the dualization of the access road serving Nile University and Baze University in the Institutions and Research District.
He commended the contractor, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, CCECC, for advancing work despite receiving less than 30% mobilization funding. “Money has never been a problem between them and the administration,” the Minister said, while assuring that the FCTA will meet its financial obligations.
Looking ahead, Wike said at least 10 major infrastructure projects are slated for commissioning by the end of the year. “By the time these projects are completed, it will be a different story, so we’re happy,” he concluded.
