Officials of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) have chased out illegal occupiers of the land belonging to the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and demolished hundreds of unapproved infrastructures in the Lugbe community of Abuja.
The FCTA officials invaded and demolished a popular area known as Timber Shield Market in Lugbe, which was illegally occupied by timber dealers, scavengers, and other sellers of low-value items.
After the exercise, the FCTA director of the Department of Development Control, Mukhtar Galadima, said the operation was an ongoing exercise of city cleaning and removal of illegal structures.
He said the area is a corridor of Ring Road 3 that connects Gwarimpa and the Public Service Institute, as well as links Siraji to the Apo Mechanics Area.
Galadima said before the demolition exercise, several notices were served on the occupies followed by meetings with the traders and some key stakeholders.
“The area is behind high tension line, TCN had awarded a contract for the energization of the power line, and the illegal structures must be removed before the commencement of the work
“Before the operation, we had invited all the traders and stakeholders for a meeting, and we briefed them on our intention. They were given enough time to relocate so that the work will commence, about two months ago.
“We are going to sustain it, nobody will be allowed to return to the area,” he said.
Also, the secretary of the Command and Control Centre, FCTA, Peter Olumuji said the clean-up will help in securing lives and property in Lugbe and environs and that the administration is committed to fighting activities that will pave the way for crime and would not allow the unapproved area to exist.
“The clean-up exercise will help in securing lives and property in Lugbe and its environs. Aside from what the Transmission Company of Nigeria is going to do, it will also help to reduce the crime rate within the axis, because the place harbours a lot of criminal-minded individuals,” he said.
He said the exercise was a renewal of the FCT administration’s war against drug dealers and other illegal activities gaining ground in the area.
