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Tag: FCT

  • Xmas: Police ban sale, use of firecrackers in FCT

    Xmas: Police ban sale, use of firecrackers in FCT

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has banned the sale, purchase, or use of firecrackers, knockout explosives, and other unauthorized pyrotechnics before or during the Christmas celebrations.

    The decision, according to the FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josphine Adeh, was taken over the Command’s concern about the increasing circulation of these items across Abuja.

    Adeh said, “Firecrackers pose serious safety hazards, including injuries, fire outbreaks, and widespread panic. They also create opportunities for criminal elements to mask unlawful activities.

    “Beyond these risks, their indiscriminate use disrupts public peace and endangers vulnerable members of the community, particularly children, the elderly, and persons with underlying health conditions”.

    Police advised residents of the Territory to comply with the advisory.

    She said, “FCT Police operatives have been charged to enforce this directive and ensure that violators are arrested and prosecuted accordingly”.

    She encouraged the public to remain vigilant and promptly report anyone involved in the sale or use of firecrackers.

    Adeh said, “Reports may be made at the nearest police station or through the FCT Police Command emergency lines: 08032003913, 08068587311.”

  • Unity Colleges, FCT schools fingered in hidden charges scandal

    Unity Colleges, FCT schools fingered in hidden charges scandal

    Stakeholders in education sector have expressed deep concern over mounting reports that Unity Colleges and public basic schools in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are imposing illegal hidden charges on students.

    In separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja, the stakeholders said the hidden charges are arbitrary and negate the clear provisions of Universal Basic Education (UBE) Act on free and compulsory basic education.

    They warned that the increasingly common practice of masking school fees as levies or mandatory items, undermines the government’s commitment to providing free basic education and can force many children out of school.

    NAN reports that in-spite of the UBE Act’s clear mandate for free and compulsory basic education, unity schools in the FCT are collecting as high as N300,000 in disguised charges from a student.

    Some other public FCT boarding and day schools are also collecting from N120,000 to N200,000 in different charges before registering students who gained admission into their schools.

    The stakeholders described the trend as a dangerous violation of the law, cautioning that the hidden levies threaten to push vulnerable children out of school.

    Specifically, they said the practice, often hidden under uniforms, administrative levies, and PTA-imposed items, raised serious concerns about accessibility, and could trigger a rise in school dropouts.

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    The UBE Act of 2004 mandates that the Nigerian government provides free and compulsory education for all children up to the junior secondary school level.

    The Act makes it illegal to charge fees for public primary and junior secondary schools and holds parents accountable for ensuring their children to attend school.

    However, the NAN investigations revealed that in the receipt issued to students by the schools, the column for school fees is deliberately written zero, while the charges are  wrapped in mandatory items, administrative levies and PTA-imposed obligations.

    Others vary from uniform, locker, bunk space, medical test and a whole lots of other charges that amounted to the over N300,000.

    A parent, whose child gained admission into JSS 1 in Government Science School, Maitama, a unity school, gave a breakdown of the money that was paid.

     The breakdown are: Parent feeding contribution charges-N36,000 Parent sundry contribution- N7,400, Material charges- N18,375, PTA Support- N16,500.

    The payment included, Books- N88,000. Admission letter-N10,000 Guidance and Counselling- N5,000, Lab coat- N5,000

    Others were, Locker- 30,000, Mattress- N25,000, Pillow- N2,000, school toiletries- N16,000, hostel toiletries- N22,000 as well as other unreceipted payments.

  • FCT Police deny assassination attempt on Lt. Yerima

    FCT Police deny assassination attempt on Lt. Yerima

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has dismissed viral social media reports alleging an attempted assassination on Lt. Ahmed Yerima.

    Police described the claim as false and capable of causing unnecessary public panic.

    In a statement  on Sunday night, the FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, said the Command has no record or report of any such incident within the FCT.

    Yerima last week had a confrontation with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), Nyesom Wike, over a disputed land site in Gaduwa District.

    The clash, captured on video, sparked widespread public debate.

    The viral social media report said Yerima was trailed by unidentified men dressed in black and riding in two unmarked Hilux vans with no number plates, adding that the vehicles allegedly followed him from the NIPCO Filling Station off Kubwa Expressway to Gado Nasco Way.

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    Adeh urged residents to disregard the publication, which she described as misleading and unverified, noting that the spread of false information poses a threat to public peace and safety.

    “For the safety of all residents, the Command advises the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the nearest Police Division,” Adeh stated.

    She also provided the Command’s emergency contact lines 08032003913 and 08068587311 for swift response to distress situations.

    The Police reiterated their commitment to maintaining law and order across the nation’s capital.

  • Investor backs Wike’s reforms, urges diaspora Nigerians to replicate master communities at home

    Investor backs Wike’s reforms, urges diaspora Nigerians to replicate master communities at home

    A real estate investor has urged private developers to adopt a structured and sustainable approach to urban growth in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), aligning their projects with government regulations and embracing the “master community” model of development.

    Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, the Founder of Wardiere Oakmount Developments, Diamond Ilori, said the reforms being implemented by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, to restore order in land administration and development control should be viewed as necessary corrections rather than punitive measures.

    “The FCT is our national capital. There should be a well-organized and properly followed plan. What the Minister is doing should be seen as a correction, not a punishment. We cannot afford to let Abuja become like Lagos, where everyone builds whatever they like,” Ilori said.

    He called on developers to comply with the Land Use Act, pay ground rent, and perfect their title documents to avoid land revocation or demolition.

    “Once you are regularized and get documentation from the FCDA, you must keep paying ground rent. It’s a legal obligation, not an imposition,” he stated.

    Ilori, however, urged the government to carry developers along by increasing sensitization on land regularization and compliance procedures, noting that many violations occur out of ignorance rather than deliberate disobedience.

    To further professionalize the sector, he proposed the establishment of a Real Estate Regulatory Authority similar to Dubai’s Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA), which certifies agents, monitors developers, and enforces standards.

    “If such a system exists, every developer and agent would need certification before operating. It will bring order, professionalism, and protect investors,” he said.

    On the ongoing land regularization drive in the FCT, Ilori said disputes often arise because many landholders in area councils fail to update their documents with the FCDA.

    “Some people have titles issued by area councils but not recorded in FCDA’s system. When development control inspects such plots, they appear empty and are reallocated. Proper regularization would prevent this,” he said.

    He added that development control agencies prioritize large-scale, integrated communities over scattered small plots because they allow better planning and infrastructure.

    “Small plots of 2,000 square meters cannot support schools or hospitals. Government prefers consolidated communities where essential services are integrated within defined spaces,” he explained.

    Ilori, who has worked and lived in Dubai for years, said Nigeria’s real estate industry could learn from countries that promote structured community development where housing, commerce, and recreation coexist seamlessly.

    He highlighted his company’s ongoing projects in Abuja, which he described as “master communities”, self-contained developments combining residential areas with schools, hospitals, parks, shopping malls, and public transport systems.

    “Our goal is to build ecosystems, not just estates. Every component, housing, transport, leisure, and retail, supports the other. The estate will have its own buses, city centre, and malls. These make life easier for residents while generating income that sustains the community,” he said, citing The Valley, a Wardiere Oakmount project in Kuje, Abuja.

    “This is not about creating elitist settlements. The facilities are designed to make life easier and add long-term value for residents. When you solve daily challenges like transport and shopping within the estate, you make communities more livable,” he explained.

    Ilori said Wardiere Oakmount’s Al Barari project in Abuja was created by consolidating smaller parcels into a master community, with 40 percent dedicated to green areas, parks, and water bodies.

    “We are ensuring a balance between environmental sustainability and urban growth. Unlike many concrete-heavy estates, Al Barari will remain green and compliant with FCDA guidelines,” he said.

    He encouraged Nigerians abroad to apply the same level of discipline and planning standards they see in developed countries when investing at home.

    “Diaspora Nigerians should not just build houses; they should build organized communities. That’s how to grow our cities sustainably and make Abuja truly world-class,” Ilori said.

  • Teacher bags life imprisonment for sodomising nine-year-old pupil

    Teacher bags life imprisonment for sodomising nine-year-old pupil

    The Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja, presided over by Justice M Osho Adebiyi, has sentenced a 19-year-old teacher, Abdullahi Abbass, to life imprisonment, without the option of a fine, for sodomising a nine-year-old pupil.

    The convict who was working in one of the schools located in the Kwali area of Abuja was the class teacher of the victim. 

    According to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), on the 19th March 2025, after school hours, he sent another pupil to call the victim from their home. 

    The convict thereafter took the victim down the street where he lived and raped the male victim through the anus. 

    The National Press Officer of NAPTIP, Vincent Adekoye, in a statement on Saturday, noted that the report indicated that despite the threat from the convict, the victim reported the incident to his mother, which led to his arrest by the Police and referral of the case to NAPTIP.

    He was arraigned on two-count charges involving rape and sexual abuse, and he was convicted on 29th October, 2025.

    Reacting to the development, Director General of NAPTIP, Binta Bello, commended the Judiciary for the judgment and the support of all partners in the prosecution of the case and the offender’s conviction.

    She said: “This is a landmark judgment that carries the commensurable punishment for the offender. This will serve as a deterrent, and his name shall feature prominently in our Sex Offenders Register.

    “I wish to say that the speedy investigation and arraignment of the Convict is a testimony to our renewed commitment and determination to tackle the incidence of domestic violence, rape, and other forms of sexual abuse in the Country.

    “I thank the Judiciary for the judgment and the Nigeria Police for the inter-Agency collaboration on this case”.

  • FCT launches guidelines, monitoring framework on non-custodial sentences

    FCT launches guidelines, monitoring framework on non-custodial sentences

    The Honourable Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory, Justice Husseini Baba Yusuf, has launched guidelines and a monitoring framework on non-custodial sentences.

    The milestone stride aims to address congestion in correctional facilities and promote the rehabilitation of petty offenders in the FCT.

    The signing ceremony was held at the Judges’ Conference Room, FCT High Court, Maitama, Abuja, with notable dignitaries in attendance.

    These included the Honourable Judges of the FCT High Court, Magistrates, the Director-General of Legal Aid Council, the Executive Secretary of the Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee (ACJMC), a representative of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), and other critical stakeholders in the criminal justice sector.

    Speaking at the event, Justice Yusuf said, “This initiative is designed to enhance the adoption of non-custodial measures by the FCT courts in eligible cases and strengthen collaboration between the Courts and Nigerian Correctional Service.”

    The initiative, championed by the Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee (ACJMC), is in line with one of its core statutory functions made pursuant to the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 in ensuring that congestion of custodial facilities is drastically reduced.

    Capacity building programmes of key stakeholders, including the training of all Non-Custodial Officers, Magistrates, and Registrars in the FCT, are set to begin next week, convened in collaboration with the Legend Golden Care Foundation.

  • NGO, partners tackle textile waste in FCT, Enugu

    NGO, partners tackle textile waste in FCT, Enugu

    A non-profit organisation, The People’s Project for Social and Climate Justice (TPP) has collaborated with the Rotaract Club of Federal Housing Authority (FHA) Lugbe and SustyVibes Enugu to tackle textile waste in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja and Enugu.

    The collaboration was part of activities to mark World Clean-Up Day 2025 with a series of hands-on activities in Abuja and Enugu.

    The events, held at Kuchingoro Community – a suburb in the nation’s capital and at the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus (UNEC), focused on addressing the global issue of textile waste, in alignment with this year’s World Clean-Up Day theme: “Strive for Five-Tackling Textile and Fashion Waste through Circular Fashion.”

    The Abuja clean-up started with a community-wide effort in Kuchingoro.

    The event brought together community leaders, residents, to clean areas ranging from the Chief’s Palace to the local market, roads, and government secondary school (GSS) Kuchingoro.

    The team’s collaboration with local leaders demonstrated the power of community action in tackling waste challenges.

    Beyond the physical clean-up, the event also included an educational awareness session for over 50 children.

    Programs and Partnership Lead at The People’s Project, Gloria Ukamaka Christopher emphasized the importance of community involvement in creating lasting change.

    She noted: “You can’t achieve change unless you carry the community along,”

    The Chief of Kuchingoro, Alkali Dakaci Ibrahim Wamba, expressed gratitude for the initiative, praising The People’s Project for its timely action and commitment to environmental change.

    Principal of GSS Kuchingoro, Mrs. Mbanefo Theresa Ngozi also thanked the team for choosing her school, noting her excitement to see how the children would apply their new knowledge.

    In Enough, the organisation took its awareness about waste management, sustainability, and the impact of textile waste on the environment to UNN.

    Speaking at the event, a representative of SustyVibes, Sedy Isaac said: “We are saving the planet. A greener environment begins with us. We have only one planet, and it’s our duty to protect it.”

    Also speaking, a representative of TPP said: Deborah Osonuga: “With clean people, achieving clean cities is possible.”

    A representative of Enugu State Waste Management Board, Mr. Tobechukwu said: “A cleaner tomorrow is possible, it depends on our efforts to ensure that.”

    A student of the university, Student, Emmanulla Chinecherem: “Our drainages are not refuse dump sites. To foster a healthy environment, I have to dispose of waste carefully.”

    The clean-up covered several key areas on campus, including the Love Garden, Old Refectories, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Manua Bus Stops, and the Faculty of Law.

    The team worked diligently to collect and sort waste into plastic, sewage, and solid waste categories.

    Over 30 bags of waste were collected, significantly reducing litter within the university environment.

    The program also provided an opportunity for participants to engage in meaningful conversations with students about the importance of waste management and its effects on public health and the environment.

    Many students expressed gratitude and curiosity about the initiative, eager to learn more about how they could contribute to a cleaner, healthier environment.

    Ends****

  • Tinubu grants automatic employment to children of late FCT HoS

    Tinubu grants automatic employment to children of late FCT HoS

    President Bola Tinubu has approved automatic employment for the four children of the late Head of the Civil Service of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Dr. Grace Adayilo.

    FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, disclosed this on Saturday during the funeral service at the National Ecumenical Centre, Abuja. 

    Top government officials, civil servants, family and friends gathered to pay their last respects to Adayilo.She died recently in Abuja. 

    Wike described her death as a painful loss, noting that she was a committed, humble and diligent public servant whose contributions to the FCT Administration would be missed.

    The Minister praised Adayilo’s dedication to duty, recalling how she discharged her responsibilities with passion and without excuses.

    He noted that she was instrumental in ensuring timely payment of salaries and entitlements for civil servants, while also being a respected mobilizer within her community. 

    Wike said: ” We all know that we will die one day, that is guaranteed. 

    “When you get to meet with people in life, you know that there are people that you will never pray to miss. There are people you work with in life, you want it to continue.

    “It becomes more painful when there is no sign that somebody whom you are relating with, somebody you are working with, he just comes to work and the next day you hear that the person is no longer there, the person has passed on. It is very, very painful. I have worked with people of different categories.

    “When I came to FCT in August 2023, I have worked with civil servants from the state, from the local government, and down to the federal level. I can see that there is a difference, that there are people who are so passionate, and committed to every assignment you give them. I didn’t know her personally, but I think I saw her when she was appointed and was the first set of permanent secretaries appointed by Mr. President.

    “Of course, all of us know that before this period, there were no permanent secretaries in FCTA. Permanent secretaries were been posted from the federal civil service, but by the grace of God, Mr. President changed that to encourage the civil servants who will retire when they get to their director level, and that has given so many people the opportunity to be appointed as permanent secretaries. And that was my first time, I can say I met her. 

    “On behalf of Federal Capital Territory administration  on behalf of Mr. President, I want to say, sorry. We send our condolences to the families, to the children and extended family.

    “Mr. President has directed me to give the four children automatic employment. Because, Mr. President understands, that now that there is no bread winner for them to survive. She is all and all for the family”.

  • ‘No case of Ebola in FCT’

    ‘No case of Ebola in FCT’

    The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) on Friday established that the suspected Ebola case reported in the nation’s capital has tested negative.

    FCTA urged the public to remain calm and avoid spreading unverified information.

    Speaking while briefing journalists, the FCT Mandate Secretary for Health and Environmental Services, Dr. Adedolapo Fasawe, explained that the suspected case was identified only as Patient X for confidentiality.

    Fasawe said it was immediately reported after showing symptoms of fever and unexplained bleeding upon returning from Rwanda.

    According to the FCT Epidemiologist, Dr Lukman Lawal, the case triggered an immediate activation of the Emergency Operations System in line with World Health Organization, WHO, National, and FCT protocols.

    Lawal said contact tracing, sample collection, and laboratory testing were conducted without delay and results from the National Reference Laboratory returned negative within six hours.

    Fasawe commended the patient for seeking medical attention immediately, the private facility that raised the alert at Nisa Premier Hospital, for maintaining a high index of suspicion, and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, (NCDC), for its swift collaboration with the FCT health authorities.

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    She said: “This incident shows that our surveillance system is active and alert. Every fever is not malaria. Every fever is not Ebola. What matters is early reporting and strict adherence to protocol”.

    Fasawe said that while Nigeria has no recorded Ebola cases, the vigilance remains high because of outbreaks in neighboring countries.

    According to the mandate secretary: “The FCT Administration has already conducted two Ebola-related investigations this year, both of which returned negative”.

    Fasawe also warned against misinformation and panic, calling on the media to verify information before publication. She reminded the public that stigmatizing patients only worsens health crises.

    She further urged Nigerians to make use of the toll-free line 6232 and other official NCDC platforms for reporting suspected cases of infectious diseases, adding that “the vigilance of one clinician can save a nation.”

    “Diseases do not know borders. With air travel, anyone can move from an endemic country to Nigeria within hours. That is why surveillance at our borders and within our communities is critical,” she said.

    The suspected patient, the administration said, is currently responding well to treatment for other conditions and is expected to be discharged soon.

    She urged journalists to always verify information before passing it to the general public to avoid panic.

    On the strike called off by the FCT doctors, Fasawe commended them for calling off the strike and also hailed the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike for approving all their requests.

    She pleaded for patience to allow due process while the order is implemented as soon as possible.

  • Minister pledges support to hajj exercises in FCT

    Minister pledges support to hajj exercises in FCT

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister of State, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud has reaffirmed the commitment of the administration to provide first-class welfare services to its contingents on hajj exercises.

    Mahmoud made the pledge on Thursday when she received the Director of the FCT Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board (MPWB), Mallam Kadiri Edah, who presented the three certificates of recognition for the 2025 hajj exercise awarded by the Independent Hajj Reporters.

    The Minister stated that the awards by the Non-Governmental Organization that monitors hajj activities was a testimony of the effort by the Administration through the MPWB in the provision of best services to the pilgrims each year in Hajj operation.

    The minister said the present administration has carried out a series of reforms to ensure that Nigerians who choose to partake in the religious exercise through the FCT MPWB gets value for their hard-earned money and get satisfaction for the services rendered.

    She explained that the Administration would continue to support the Board and other departments in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. 

    She disclosed that the FCT Administration is coming up with new strategies to ensure that Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board wins more awards of excellence in future Hajj operations through enhanced services.

    In his speech while presenting the three medals to the Minister, the Director of the Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, Mallam Kadiri Edah disclosed that the awards were as a result of the support enjoyed by the entire workforce of the Board from the Minister of FCT and the Minister of State throughout the 2025 Hajj exercise.

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    Edah stated that with the support of the administration, the Board was able to record the best hajj exercise in 2025 despite all challenges that are peculiar to hajj operations.

    The director presented the three medals and the certificates of excellence to the FCT Minister of state, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud through the Chairman of the 2025 Hajj Ministerial Committee, Dr. Abdullahi Isah Kauranmanta.

    Meanwhile, three members of staff of the MPWB were recognized for their outstanding performance during the last exercise.

    The director of FCT MPWB, Kadiri Edah clinched the award of the best Service Oriented Pilgrims’ Board Executive during the 2025 Hajj exercise, the Public Relations Officer of the Board, Mohammed Lawal Aliyu and Head of ICT unit of the Board, Na’Allah Ado were honoured for their meritorious service to FCT Pilgrims throughout the Hajj exercise in their various fields.