The Federal Capital Territory Administration has constituted vetting committees to scrutinise the sale of Federal Government houses in the FCT, and the titling of designated park plots, including the management of allied land parcels in Abuja.
This was disclosed by the FCT Director of Land Administration, Chijioke Nwankwoeze, while inaugurating the vetting committees in his office.
In a statement signed by his Assistant Director of Information and Customer Service, Badaru Yakassai, on Saturday, Nwakwoeze explained that the committees were established to implement ministerial directives “following the discovery of serious irregularities and infractions in the sale of Federal Government houses in the FCT.
“The Director added that the said irregularities and fractions discovered include deviation from approval mandate, improper verifications, late payments, inadequate documentations, poor interdepartmental coordination and other specific infractions,” the statement added.
Nwankwoeze stated that the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, approved the constitution of the committees “with clear directives, mandates, and terms of reference, to ensure that all processes are completed within a reasonable time frame.”
Nwankwoeze added that the vetting team on the sale of government houses is expected “to restore order, accountability, and transparency in line with the original 2003–2005 monetisation and sales policy framework of the Federal Government.”
He further stated that a second vetting committee had been set up to handle the titling of designated park plots, with a mandate to align the activities of the Department of Parks and Recreation with the current land reform policies of the FCT Administration.
“The setting up of the vetting committees was a bold and irreversible step toward restoring sanity and public trust in the FCTA.
“He emphasised that the government has deployed machinery to put to rest all lingering issues surrounding the sales of the Federal Government’s houses and designated park plots in the territory,” the statement further read.
The director expressed confidence that the committees will sanitise the system and rebuild citizens’ trust in public land administration.
“This is because the FCT Minister has the ‘political will’ to drive it to a logical conclusion, and this forms part of the aspirations of the ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Nwankwoeze stated.
