Senate drops motion urging Wike to halt land revocations, reallocations in Abuja

The Senate on Wednesday withdrew a motion seeking to compel the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to halt the revocation and reallocation of lands in Abuja.

The motion, sponsored by the senator representing the FCT, Ireti Kingibe, was withdrawn following deliberations at plenary after a majority of senators opposed aspects of it through a voice vote.

Mr Wike, through the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), has overseen the demolition of structures in several parts of Abuja, which authorities say were erected in violation of the city’s Master Plan.

Beyond demolitions, the minister has also revoked and reallocated land titles, in some instances assigning such lands to new beneficiaries.

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The FCTA has consistently maintained that many of the demolished structures lacked valid titles or violated approved land-use plans, arguing that previous administrations allowed widespread infractions that distorted the original Abuja Master Plan.

Although Mrs Kingibe raised concerns over these actions during plenary, the motion was ruled inadmissible as a matter of urgent national importance, and she was directed to withdraw it.

Motion for urgent national importance

Earlier in the sitting, Mrs Kingibe invoked Orders 41 and 51 of the Senate Standing Orders to present a motion on urgent national importance, arguing that issues of national concern could be debated without prior notice if the presiding officer’s consent had been obtained.

The motion sought Senate intervention on waste management and sewage services in the FCT, protection of designated green areas, and an investigation into the alleged unlawful seizure of land belonging to Bwari General Hospital.

She told the chamber that she had informed the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, about the motion and secured his consent before presenting it.

Waste management concerns

While presenting the motion, Mrs Kingibe lamented that municipal waste collection across several districts of the FCT had stalled for weeks, leading to massive accumulation of refuse in residential, commercial and public areas.

She attributed the situation to the non-payment of contractors and workers under the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) and other relevant FCT agencies, noting that they had reportedly not been paid for about nine months. This, she said, resulted in prolonged industrial action and the collapse of essential municipal services.

The senator further alleged that despite the outstanding debts owed to contractors between March and October 2025, the FCT minister awarded new waste management contracts, retaining only 50 per cent of the unpaid contractors while introducing new ones.

According to her, the newly engaged contractors have written to the minister, indicating their inability to commence operations without a 30 per cent mobilisation fee, further worsening the waste crisis.

She warned that sewage blockages and accumulated waste, which have persisted for nearly eight months, had reached crisis levels, posing serious public health risks, including exposure to waterborne diseases and environmental contamination.

Land revocation allegations

Mrs Kingibe also raised concerns over land revocations and reallocations in the FCT, alleging that Mr Wike had, in several instances, proceeded with demolitions and reallocations despite subsisting court processes, thereby undermining the rule of law.

She referenced a land dispute involving the University of Abuja and argued that such actions violated the FCT Act of 1976, the Land Use Act of 1978, and Section 88 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which empowers the National Assembly to investigate administrative actions in the public interest.

She therefore urged the Senate to mandate the FCT Minister and the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) to halt all revocations, reallocations, and alterations to designated green areas pending a comprehensive audit and compliance review of the Abuja Master Plan.

Senate debate and withdrawal

During the debate, several senators objected to the inclusion of land revocation issues in the motion.

Borno North Senator, Tahir Monguno, who initially supported the motion, later withdrew his support.

The Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, dismissed the allegations against the FCT minister, describing them as baseless.

“There are now developments in the FCT. The current minister changed the face of Abuja. He’s doing extremely very well. You cannot solve all problems at the same time, if there are other areas that needed to be done, we should engage our committee to interact with the minister so that he could do more,” he said.

In his response, the Senate said Mrs Kingibe had only sought approval to present a motion on waste management and not land revocations, insisting that the latter did not qualify as an issue of urgent national importance.

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Similarly, the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, argued that matters raised under the category of urgent national importance must genuinely be of national scope, adding that the allegations should instead be brought as a substantive motion on notice.

Following the deliberations, Mr Akpabio urged Mrs Kingibe to withdraw the motion.

She complied, stating that she would re-present it solely as a substantive motion on waste management.

“I will re-present it as a substantive motion on waste management,” she said.