By Omeiza Ajayi

ABUJA: Minister of the Federal Capital Territory FCT, Nyesom Wike on Wednesday lamented the refusal of some property owners in the territory to fulfil their financial obligation of ground rent payment, describing it as his greatest challenge since he assumed office less than two years ago.

Wike stated this shortly after inspecting some ongoing projects in the territory, some of which are slated for commissioning in commemoration of the second anniversary of President Bola Tinubu.

President Tinubu will be two years in office on Thursday, May 29, 2025, and Wike has outlined several projects, both within the city and satellite towns, to be commissioned within 19 days. He also said some new projects will be inaugurated.

The minister who hinted at an increase in ground rent, also declared that he will not succumb to blackmail by a section of the elite who continue to violate laws, especially with regards to the payment of the rents.

Officials of the Federal Capital Territory Administration FCTA had on Monday sealed the Wadata Plaza, national secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP following the inability of the party to pay requisite fees regarding ground rents for 28 years.

The Administration also sealed an office of the Federal Inland Revenue Service FIRS, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons NAPTIP among others.

However, both the PDP and FIRS had lashed out at the minister, accusing him of impunity and malice.

President Tinubu later intervened, granting a 14-day grace to defaulters to pay up their outstanding liabilities.

On Monday’s explosion around the Nyanya axis of the territory, Wike dismissed reports of suicide bombing, saying he did not receive such security briefing.

According to the minister, the victim had ignorantly carried an explosive material from a quarry site which exploded on him.

Wike urged caution against the use of labels, saying security is a delicate terrain and wrong impressions capable of causing tension or mass hysteria should be avoided.

An emergency service personnel was reportedly quoted as saying that the explosion was a failed suicide attack on the nearby Mogadishu Cantonment.

However, speaking on the explosion, Wike said; “Well, be careful not to create an impression. The security never said it was a suicide bomber, so you don’t go and create an impression and put fear in people. NEMA is not the head of security. Security agencies were there.

“What happened there was that somebody went to where we have these quarries, where they blast all these rocks and took the explosive and put it in his pocket. Of course, some of them may not even understand the implication of that. And so it exploded on him.

“So, that does not mean that it is a suicide bomber. We should be careful with the story we plant, and let us not send the wrong message to residents. You have said that the residents are also aware that there is security improvement. So that is enough for us. We have got a lot to do, what we are supposed to do and to allay the fears of residents that Abuja is still secure. It is most secure as far as this country is concerned. We are doing everything possible. So I did not get the report that the person was a suicide bomber. That is not correct”.

‘Greatest challenge’

“The challenge of people refusing to pay their rents, which I will speak on in the next media chat. People just want facilities, people want infrastructure but nobody asks, where are you getting these funds? Abuja is not one of the oil cities. We only rely on taxes, and these are not new taxes. These are taxes that have been there for years.

“It is unfortunate that most elite own houses overseas. They know the implications of not paying their taxes. They know such houses are gone. But when it comes to your own country, you do not want to do that, simply because nobody wants to obey laws and everybody thinks there are no sanctions. I have said it – that it did not happen yesterday, does not mean it will not happen today. That it did not happen today does not mean it will not happen tomorrow. So, we must do something to say that we are also supporting government to see that those infrastructure that we need, we do our own part.

‘Ground rent increase’

“Look at the years, 20 something years, 30 something years. And how much is it? We have not increased the ground rent but, we are working towards that. We will do that. I can assure you.

“The President has given a window of two weeks. Let nobody think that blackmail or whatever will stop us. We will do what we are supposed to do. This is all about leadership. We will not give in to blackmail. We will do the right thing. If you have not paid, we will take measures against you.

“As I travelled, I signed over 1,500 Certificates of Occupancy and Assignments. Now, when we sign that, you collect the C-of-O, and then you will not pay taxes to the government? I mean, it is not acceptable. It doesn’t matter what anybody wants to say, it is not acceptable.

“So that is our challenge. Pay your taxes and see what we are doing. It is not to say, FCT is doing well. How are we doing well? We are doing well because we are prudently managing the resources we have. If you pay your taxes, you will see that it will be a different thing and that is what we are trying to do. So this is one of the heavy challenges that we are facing and we will surmount it. Be assured that we are going to surmount it”, he vowed.

Wike also expressed happiness at the quality of projects he inspected, praising the contractors for keeping to timelines and specifications.

“I feel so happy that the contractors have lived up to expectations. The quality of work is superb. I am sure residents in this area are very happy with the administration of the President. He made a promise to develop great road infrastructure. So this is what he has done”, he stated.