The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, on Friday visited Apo-Dutse District, where 11 duplexes built by the Nigeria Police Force were demolished for violating planning laws.

Visibly angered, Wike condemned what he called a “brazen abuse of power” after Police officers allegedly arrested Development Control officials who carried out the demolition.

“Government enforces laws, not breaks them. How can anyone build under high-tension lines? Once approval is denied, no one has the right to take the law into their hands,” he said.

Wike revealed that the Police had earlier been denied building approval on safety grounds but went ahead regardless. He vowed to take the matter up with the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, stressing that Abuja’s master plan would not be compromised.

Director of Development Control, Mukhtar Galadima, said the disputed plot allocated to the Police in 2018 sits directly beneath high-tension lines and within a proposed flood-control corridor.

Despite repeated warnings, he said, construction continued until officials moved in to enforce compliance, leading to their brief detention by the Police.

The FCT Administration has warned that any developer who violates planning regulations risks losing investments and facing sanctions. The demolished duplexes, located along Garba Duba Street, were found to pose serious safety and environmental hazards.

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The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has demolished more than 1,000 makeshift shanties and unauthorized structures blocking a major road corridor in Karsana, close to the Bunkoro District in Gwarinpa.

Director of Development Control, Muktar Galadima, confirmed the operation on Monday during a citywide sanitation exercise carried out by the FCTA joint task force.

He explained that the clean-up targeted illegal squatters and people of questionable character, stressing that indigenous homes were deliberately spared. The demolition, he said, would continue until the entire two-kilometre stretch of road was cleared.

“Today’s exercise is along the proposed Ring Road 3 corridor at the intersection of N16 and RR3, near Mab Global Estate. The shanties and illegal settlements here pose both security and environmental threats, so the operation is continuing as planned,” Galadima said.

Most of the destroyed structures, he noted, were temporary shelters built with wood and other weak materials. He added that the exercise had already cleared over 1,000 shanties, with more still under removal.

Speaking on the security implications, Adamu Gwary, FCTA Director of Security Services Development, represented by Dr. Peter Olumuji, said the operation had brought relief to nearby estates such as Mab Global.

“There is a clear link between development control and community safety. Many criminal elements hide within these illegal structures, using indigenous settlements as cover,” he said.

Gwary added that no arrests were made during the operation, but the exercise would continue to address security concerns. He also confirmed an ongoing crackdown on vehicles with tinted windows, explaining that many permits were forged and tied to robbery cases.

Despite an Inspector-General of Police directive delaying enforcement until October 2025, Gwary defended the early crackdown, pointing to a rise in “one-chance” robberies involving illegally tinted vehicles in Abuja.

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