By Sarah NEGEDU
Indigenous groups in the FCT have condemned the demolition of homes in Kuchibedna community, demanding urgent compensation and accusing authorities of fueling a pattern of “indiscriminate demolition” across Abuja.
Tension has been building in affected settlements, with leaders warning that the repeated clearance of indigenous communities is stripping original inhabitants of their cultural identity and leaving families stranded.
Addressing journalists in Abuja, Coordinator of the FCT Senior Citizens Forum, Elder Danjuma Dara, said the situation has pushed natives to the edge.
“We are calling on the Honourable Minister, Nyesom Wike, to ensure that all affected natives and residents in the Kuchibedna community are compensated,” he said.
He added that communities such as Gishiri and Dagbalo have also suffered similar displacement and deserve redress.
Dara warned that the demolition policy, if unchecked, could trigger consequences for the FCT Administration and the federal government.
“The minister should put an end to the indiscriminate demolition of natives of Abuja communities all in the name of public interest, because the natives are gradually being pushed to the wall and anything that would not be in the interest of anybody might happen if care is not taken,” he said.
Challenging the current urban development approach, he questioned the treatment of Abuja’s original inhabitants.
“There is no state in Nigeria where the original inhabitants of the state do not have their villages. Why are the natives of the FCT treated as second-class citizens who have no right to live in their ancestral land, by taking away their land to give to a non-indigenous developer?
“We are true citizens of Nigeria and we should be treated as such. That is why we are advocating for our elected governor, more House of Representatives and Senate members. Because if we have the complete democratic structures in the FCT, all this kind of things would not happen.
“The federal government should end this marginalization of the FCT natives by ensuring that we are given the democratic structures that is due to the FCT as the 37 state of Nigeria. We cannot continue to endure the indescrimate demolition of our houses, all these must stop. Enough is enough,” he said.
Kuchibedna is the latest in a string of communities hit by demolitions that residents say come with little or no notice.
“It is sad that most times, the residents are being given little or no notice before bulldozers arrived to demolish homes, businesses, and community structures. They are treated like refugees in their own land that they have lived for centuries.
“The continuous displacement without adequate compensation or resettlement options constitutes a systematic erosion of indigenous heritage in the capital city. The government fails to understand that cultural and historical significance of our communities cannot be measured merely in square meters of land.
“We are calling on the FCT minister to intervene and correct the anomaly, because presently, he represents a critical test for the FCT administration, balancing the demands of urban development against the rights and welfare of the Abuja original inhabitants,” he said.
