Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, on Tuesday inaugurated a Task Force aimed at overseeing the issuance of Certificates of Occupancy for mass housing developments and recovering land use contravention fees in the FCT.

The task force, led by the Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Lands, and Urban and Regional Planning, Estate Surveyor Michael O. Chinda, has a one-month mandate to complete its assignment. The Executive Secretary of FCDA will serve as its secretary.

The task force, led by the Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Lands, and Urban and Regional Planning, Estate Surveyor Michael O. Chinda, has a one-month mandate to complete its assignment. The Executive Secretary of FCDA will serve as its secretary.

Other members of the Task Force include the Director of the Department of Land, Director AGIS, Director of the Department of Development Control, Director of the Department of Mass Housing, Director of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, and Director of the Department of Surveying and Mapping.

The FCT Minister highlighted that the task force’s objective is to ensure that each house in the Mass Housing Estates in the FCT is granted a Certificate of Occupancy (C-of-O), with allottees responsible for the payment.

Additionally, the task force is entrusted with enforcing penalties on allottees who have violated land use regulations in the FCT, serving as a deterrent.

Expressing concern, the FCT Minister noted the conversion of many residential allocations in the FCT for commercial purposes.

He emphasized the need to balance revenue generation for projects with controlled development activities in accordance with the law.