Wike Orders Demolition of Buildings on Abuja Water Channels, Vows to Spare No One

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has ordered the immediate demolition of structures built on designated water channels across Abuja, warning that no property owner, regardless of status or political influence, will be spared.

Wike issued the warning against the backdrop of recent flooding in parts of the Federal Capital Territory, saying the demolition exercise would continue throughout the week.

He particularly warned that structures belonging to serving lawmakers and other influential Nigerians would be affected if found obstructing water channels.

> “I am going to bring those houses down. Any house that is found on the channel—water channel will go down,” he said.

‘Some Affected Owners Are Senators’

Wike directed officials of the FCT Development Control Department to commence enforcement immediately and warned against delaying the exercise or shielding property owners.

“From today to Saturday, if the Development Control delay, let them find any excuse to run away. They cannot,” he said.

The minister disclosed that some of the properties identified for demolition belonged to senators and other prominent Nigerians.

> “Some of them are senators. Some of them are big men.”

He said the administration would enforce the FCT Master Plan irrespective of the political status of those affected.

‘Election or No Election, Those Houses Will Go’

Wike said he was prepared for criticism and political backlash over the demolitions, particularly with political activities ahead of the 2027 general elections already gathering momentum.

According to him, attempts could be made to portray the exercise as politically motivated because of its timing.

> “Whether there’s election oh, there’s no election oh, all those houses will go down.”

The minister rejected claims that enforcing the Master Plan amounted to political victimisation, noting that many of the affected structures had existed for years.

He said the properties were not owned by poor residents but by wealthy Nigerians who had built in areas where development was prohibited.

> “All those built-up areas that were not supposed to be built up, no, not a single poor person will live there. Those houses are houses built by well-to-do Nigerians.”

Wike Blames Human Activities for Abuja Flooding

The FCT minister acknowledged that heavy rainfall linked to changing weather patterns was contributing to the flooding but said human activities had significantly worsened the situation.

He identified the obstruction of waterways by developers, construction on prohibited land, failure to properly desilt drainage channels and indiscriminate dumping of refuse as major contributors.

> “We are in a climate change era. The kind of rains we have experienced, or we are experiencing now, we have not experienced before. But that is not that there are no man-made factors.”

Wike also raised concerns over the conversion of designated green areas into parks, describing the practice as another form of abuse of the FCT land-use plan.

He said historical claims or previous approvals would not be allowed to justify continued violations.

> “Because something was done wrongly many years ago, and then it will not be corrected? No, we will not allow that.”

Wike Defends FCT Administration’s Record

The minister also defended his administration’s performance over the past three years, citing the issuance of about 26,000 Certificates of Occupancy as one of its major achievements.

He contrasted the figure with the number of C of Os issued by previous administrations over a longer period, arguing that critics were using the flooding to distract from the administration’s achievements.

“The moment they saw the figures in terms of certificates of occupancy to ease businesses came out, instead of them to commend the administration, they used the issue of flood to begin to play politics,” he said.

Wike, however, appreciated residents who drew the administration’s attention to genuine flooding concerns.

He said such feedback was different from attempts to use images and videos of the flooding to attack the administration politically.

> “I appreciate those Nigerians who meant well by calling us to say, ‘Look, you may not have seen this. See what has happened.’”

The minister maintained that he would not be intimidated by criticism over the demolition exercise.

> “I never created any flood. So, I hope now that we have started to demolish, you won’t cry to say, ‘Oh, it’s against a political opponent.’ No.”