Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has ordered demolition of buildings obstructing designated waterways in Maitama and other flood-prone parts of Abuja.

Daily Trust had reported how several mansions in Maitama Extension in Abuja were submerged by flood over the weekend due to what residents described as indiscriminate construction along waterways, as well as blocked drainage channels in the area.

Sources told our correspondent that flooding worsened in the area after a major canal was covered to make way for the construction of buildings linked to a senator.

The buildings were said to have been constructed on a green area and the canal corridor.

But after embarking on an inspection tour on Tuesday, Wike asked the FCT Development Control Department to begin the demolition immediately and continue through Saturday.

He said the exercise would apply to all structures found to have been built on designated water channels, regardless of the owners’ social or political status.

“Any house that’s found on the water channel will go down. We will demolish all those houses found on the water channel. Some of them are senators. Some of them are big men,” Wike said.

“Whether there’s election or there’s no election, all those houses will go down. Heaven will not fall. Rather, heaven will be at peace that the right thing has been done.”

He insisted that political activities or the status of property owners would not stop enforcement, declaring that the government had the political will to remove structures obstructing waterways.

According to the minister, the recent flooding exposed several human activities worsening flooding in the nation’s capital, including construction on waterways, blocked drainage channels, indiscriminate dumping of refuse and inadequate maintenance of drainage infrastructure.

Wike said inspections showed that some property owners had built on channels designated in the Abuja Master Plan for stormwater.

“Unfortunately, we have gone there, and we have seen how people have blocked channels where, in the Master Plan, that is the right way where the water is supposed to be channelled,” he said.

He noted that many of the affected properties had existed for years and were largely owned by wealthy Nigerians, arguing that the government could no longer allow social status to shield illegal developments from enforcement. History

Wike also directed relevant FCT authorities to commence immediate desilting of identified drainage systems and urged residents and traders to stop dumping waste into waterways.

The minister acknowledged that climate change and unusually heavy rainfall had contributed to the flooding but maintained that human activities had significantly worsened its impact.

“Flood could be a natural disaster,” he said, while stressing that there were also “man-made factors” contributing to the situation. (Daily Trust)