By Pius Awunah
Barely 24 hours after the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCDA) announced that it was compiling a list of defaulters of ground rent and other land-related charges, the Administration has commenced an enforcement exercise against owners of over 1,000 properties in Abuja after several months of public notices and warnings.
This follows the approval of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory,Mr. Nyesom Wike, for action to be taken against the affected properties across high-brow districts, including Asokoro, Maitama, Garki and Wuse.
According to the FCTA, enforcement became necessary after repeated appeals published in national newspapers, online platforms, and television stations between May and November this year failed to yield compliance from the defaulting title holders.
A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the Minister on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, on Friday, November 28,2025,titled, “Commencement of enforcement actions on defaulters of Ground Rent payments, Land Use Conversion Fee, C-of-O bills”,announced the commencement of the exercise.
The statement reads in part: “The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has commenced enforcement actions on a total of 1,095 property titles in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) that were revoked over non-payment of Ground Rent, Certificate of Occupancy (C-OF-O) bill and Penalty/Violation fee and Land Use Conversion fee.”
It added, “The 1,095 are property titles in Asokoro, Maitama, Garki and Wuse districts of the Federal Capital City (FCC).”
“The owners had ignored a series of public notices, made from May to November, this year, by the FCTA in national dailies, online platforms and television stations, requesting defaulters to settle their financial obligations/liabilities or risk losing their titles.”
Olayinka also quoted the minister as approving the measures against the defaulting property owners.
He stated:
“The general public, particularly holders of property in the FCT, are hereby notified that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), His Excellency, Barr. Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, CON has approved the commencement of enforcement actions on a total of 1,095 properties in the Federal Capital City (FCC) for defaulting in various payments.”
He explained that despite repeated warnings, many title holders failed to settle outstanding fees in violation of the Land Use Act.
The statement continued, “Despite the several publications/public notices made by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) in some national dailies, online platforms and television stations requesting defaulters to settle their financial obligations/liabilities to the FCTA namely – Ground Rent, Certificate of Occupancy (C-of-O) Bill, Penalty/Violation Fee, and Land Use Conversion Fee, the defaulting property owners have failed to comply. This contravenes the provisions of Section 28, Subsections 5(a) and (b) of the Land Use Act and also the terms and conditions of grant of the respective Rights of Occupancy.”
Olayinka added that all grace periods had elapsed, paving the way for immediate enforcement by the FCTA.
He said:
“Following the expiration of the final grace period of fourteen (14) calendar days on Tuesday, November 25, 2025, the FCT Administration will carry out enforcement actions on the 835 properties for defaulting in payment of Ground Rent and 260 properties for defaulting in payment of Violation Fee and Land Use Conversion Fee.”
On Thursday, November 27,2025, the FCTA, through the acting Director of Press,Mrs.Rabi Musa Umar had confirmed that the organisation was compiling a list of the defaulters to sift those who were owing and those that had paid.
She ruled out any extension and said, “What we are doing now is compiling the list of those who have paid because a lot of people responded while others are still paying.
“So,in all good conscience,we can not go and start enforcement without sorting out those who have paid and those who have not paid,” she added.
The FCTA has, in recent months, intensified efforts to recover outstanding statutory charges from property owners across the Abuja metropolis.
In May 2025, the FCTA began issuing multiple public notices in national newspapers, online platforms, and broadcast stations, warning title holders to clear accumulated debts on Ground Rent, Certificate of Occupancy bills, Land Use Conversion fees, and penalty charges.
The administration had stated that persistent default by high-value property owners—particularly in prime districts such as Maitama, Asokoro, Garki, and Wuse—was contributing to significant revenue shortfalls needed for infrastructure development, city maintenance, and service delivery.
The Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, had repeatedly emphasised that the administration would no longer tolerate violations of land title conditions or disregard for statutory obligations.
The FCTA is expected to begin sealing, repossession, and other statutory enforcement activities on the affected properties in line with the minister’s approval and relevant legal provisions.
