Abuja property owners’ unpaid C of O fees hit N300bln – FCT Minister

The Federal Capital Territory is facing a massive debt crisis, with property owners owing approximately N300 billion in unpaid Certificate of Occupancy fees, according to FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, Persecondnews reports.

This staggering amount has accumulated over the years, largely due to negligence and weak enforcement mechanisms.

Wike expressed concerns over the lack of compliance among property owners, emphasizing the need for prompt payment to support the territory’s development.

Wike told a media briefing on Sunday in Abuja: “When we calculated the money owed by individuals, not including ground rent but the Certificates of Occupancy (C of O), it exceeded N300 billion.

“If we manage to recover that N300 billion today, you could travel to America and return in six months, and you would see that the FCT is a completely transformed place.”

Wike vowed to recover the debts, saying his administration had begun implementing measures to that effect.

On revenue generation, the minister noted with satisfaction that the FCT’s revenue has “exponentially increased” since he took office in 2023.

“When I came, we were generating about N9 to N10 billion monthly. Today we are not generating less than N25 billion. In fact, last month we were able to generate over N40 billion.

“How do we generate funds without taxes and ground rents? The question residents should ask is whether they are seeing their money working for them. Yes, we are justifying that C of O debts,” said the former Rivers governor.