NEWS
Shanty Dwellers Vow Not to Relocate from Abuja
By Laide Akinboade, Abuja
In order to stop the rise of shanties and slums in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the Administration on Tuesday said there is no going back to removing the shanties and slums, just as the inmates of a popular Ruga settlement have vowed to remain till they are resettled by the government.
The settlement located by the Abuja City Gate is said to have been demolished over 20 times, as illegal settlers always return to the area.
Secretary of community, Ibrahim Yusuf, who decried the frequent demolition of the community, ascribed the rise in slums to the high cost of accommodation in Abuja.
Yusuf, who pointed out that residents of the community also contribute to the socio-economic growth of the FCT, asked the Administration to consider relocating or developing low cost housing for them.
He added that while residents of the community are ready to vacate the area, they are not willing to leave the FCT.
“Most of these houses in Abuja are built by our people as labourers and different kinds of services, a lot of us do so many things, but nobody wants to even know. What they tell us all the time is you people are living in an illegal area, so leave the place.
“We cannot afford other places to relocate to and live within the city. If I’m staying in a satellite town, transportation is an issue, how much will I spend in a month.
“We have been in this community for more than 20 years, and they have come for demolition here more than 20 times, and we are still here. We are appealing to the government that we want a resettlement. Whatever condition they can give us, to resettle us, I think we are ready to accept those conditions. This is just our appeal.
“We can be ready to vacate the place, but we are not ready to leave Abuja. Because, we would always want to find a place to put our heads, it means demolition will continue. So, it is important for us to come to terms with the government, so that we will have an understanding. So nobody is fighting anyone.”
However, the Director of Security Services, Adamu Gwary, who led a joint task team to the site charged land owners to begin developing their plots to discourage shanties from creeping back.
The Director, who was represented by the Secretary, FCT Command and Control Centre, Dr. Peter Olumuji, said the exercise was based on ministerial directive to rid the city of every form of nuisance and criminality.
“Because of the concern of the FCT Administration it established a special task team called ‘Operation Sweep’ headed by the Commissioner of FCT, CP Olatunji Disu. We have been working from day one, and this is the ninth day.
“Ruga village is where we have a lot of shanties and other illegal structures on peoples’ plots of land, and it has been established overtime these structures harbour criminal elements and all unauthorised persons, who go into activities that are abominable to the law of the land.
“The site is also close to the rail corridors, and we must always make such places safer for those using the Metro line. This is why we removed the illegal structures. You know we have had incidents of vandalism of the rail tracks.
“Coming here to remove this unplanned settlement and shanties would improve security of the rail corridor. The operation is a holistic one that covers different activities in the city.”
On ensuring that those displaced don’t return to reoccupy the area, he said, “The FCT Minister has categorically said that all those who own plots land in the city should develop it or face revocation.
“Most of them here have complained overtime that they have not been able to have access to their plots of land because of these shanties and criminal elements there.
“They have tried to take over their plots of land in time past, and they have come under attack, but today the FCTA had come with the Task team to help them clear the place. So let the owners of the plots of land there immediately take over and start development.”
The FCT Customary Court, Dutse, Abuja has appealed to the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) to facilitate the renovation of its court complex which fell victim to vandalism and arson during the 2020 EndSARS protests.The President of the Court, Aderinto Adesoji, made the appeal during a resumed hearing in a divorce case between a petitioner, Chiwendu Nwadi and her husband, Emeka Nwadi in Ushafa, Abuja.
The Customary Court, Dutse has been sharing the court complex of a sister court in Ushafa for its sittings following the destruction. of its facilities, four years back.NAN reports that while Customary Court, Ushafa, the real owner of the facility, has its sittings on Monday, Wednesday and Friday in a week, the Dutse court has its sittings on Tuesday and Thursday. Report says that Dutse and Ushafa are communities in Bwari Area Council of the FCT and they are about 17 kilometres apart.Addressing lawyers to the parties in the divorce case, when they were finding it difficult to agree on a date for next hearing in the matter, the President of the court said it is a recurrent challenge in matters before the courtAccording to him, the constraint of the panel, sitting only twice in a week has grossly affected quick dispensation of justice.He said most cases before the cout involve families, in particular, custody of children which require urgent adjudication, and should not be encumbered.Adesoji said, considering the fact that lawyers and their clients are affected by the constraints, the NBA should take steps to ensure that the appropriate authorities renovate the Dutse court complex.He said promises have been made by the association to that effect in the past, but they were yet to be actualised.Responding to the President’s appeal, Mr Moses Ibe, the lawyer to the petitioner promised the court that he would convey the message to the NBA, Bwari branch for necessary action.Ibe said this in an interview after the court session, that the distance of the court to its jurisdiction and the restrictive days of sittings have affected quick dispensation of justice.He said the essence of building the Dutse court was to bring justice closer to the people, but it has been defeated by the failure of appropriate authorities to renovate it for useThe Counsel promised to officially write to the NBA, Bwari branch to convey the Judge’s message and request for interventionAccording to Ibe, the Dutse court complex, used to serve as the Secretariat of the NBA Bwari branch, before it was vandalised and set ablaze by the EndSARS protesters.Meanwhile, the court has adjourned further hearing in the divorce petition until Oct. 21 to enable the respondent file his reply.Adesoji and other members of the panel, Nana Atipkoru, Aisha Hamza adjourned the case following the position of the respondent’s lawyer, Cornelius Simon, that his client was not served with the “particular of claims” in the petition.The panel directed that all necessary processes should be filed and served before the adjourned date so that the case would be fixed for definite hearing.The panel also ordered that the parties should maintain the status quo, particularly, as regards the custody of the children – the last child is with the petitioner, while the other two are in the custody of the respondent.In the case, the petitioner is seeking, among others, the dissolution of her 13 years marriage with her husband on the ground that “the union has broken down irretrievably”.She alleged that the husband, “is a man of unimaginable violence and cruelty, fetish, a serial wife beater and adulterer’The petitioner alleged that her husband deliberately poisoned her drink which led to losing her pregnancy.According to the petitioner, the union, consummated in 2011, under the native law and custom, as well as exchange of marital vows in a Church, has produced three children, ages, 12 years, 11 years and 2 years.She urged the court to dissolve the marriage, grant custody of the three children to her and restrain the husband from using thugs or any security agents to harass her. (NAN)
The Northern Youths Assembly has cautioned the National Assembly against passing the Tax Reforms Bill from the executive before the legislature.This is contained in an open letter to the lawmakers signed by the group’s President, Dr Ali Mohammed, and Secretary-General, Dr Garba Abduljafiz and made available to newsmen in Kano on Thursday.
The group said the bill, if passed into law, would not be in the interest of the people, particularly youths, urging for broader consultation on matters of that nature. The youths urged the National Assembly to concentrate on youth-friendly laws to safeguard the country’s future instead.“The youth are Nigeria’s future, “and our prosperity hinges on investments in education, skills development, and job creation.“As the largest political demography in the nation, youth must have a say in laws and policies that directly impact the country’s future.“We call for the creation of a special place at the centre, to allow the youths to contribute to solutions that may promote sustainable development, job creation, and economic empowerment,” the group said.The group urged the lawmakers to focus more on making laws that would improve investment climate and job creation.“We urge the National Assembly members to direct their resources and energy towards creating laws that would prioritise and encourage foreign investment.“The laws should encourage skills development and jobs creation for the teeming population of the youths, to improve measures that risk stifling the Nigerian economic opportunity.“We also urge them to stop complying with the dictates and advisory of the agents of destruction, IMF and World.“We must stay away from the trap of the IMF and World Bank, as they are all out to destroy our country through their ill-formulated policies and misleading advisory’’, the group said. (NAN)
The Defence Headquarters has confirmed the emergence of a new terrorists’ group known as ‘Lukarawas’ exacerbating insecurity in the North Western part of Nigeria.The Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Edward Buba, made this known while briefing newsmen on the operations of the military on Thursday in Abuja.
Buba said that the new terror group emerged from the Republic of Niger after the coup that led to the breakdown of military cooperation between Nigeria and Niger. He said that the terrorists began incursion into northern parts of Sokoto and Kebbi States from the Niger Republic and Mali axis, particularly after the coup in Niger Republic.According to him, prior to the coup, there were joint border operations with Nigerien security forces which kept the terrorist at bay.“The terrorists took advantage of the gaps in cooperation between both countries and exploited difficult terrains to make incursions in remote areas in some North Western states to spread their ideology,” he said.Buba said that the group was accommodated by the locals who initially thought that the group meant well for them, adding that they failed to report the movement to the military and security agencies.He gave assurance that toops had sustained Imtelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) to degrade the terrorists.He added that the terror group had continued to take advantage of the vast under-governed areas to hide and evade troops as well as harass the locals.According to him, troops are locating them and eliminating the threat. (NAN)
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