Succour appears to be on the horizon for Gishiri residents, as the FCT Minister, Mr. Nyesom Wike, has increased their compensation package from N655 million to N1.3 billion for the demolition of over 200 houses in the community.
Wike announced the cheering news on Monday in Abuja.
Persecondnews recalls that the residents, whose houses were demolished on March 11 for building on a designated road corridor, rejected the compensation earlier provided by the Federal Capital Territory Development Authority (FCDA), for being inadequate and paltry.
One of their advocates, Mr. John Madalla Maikasuwa, said: “We are calling for help, we are going through a lot. We cooperated with them when they came for house numbering and capturing in 2024, afterwards they came for evaluation.
“After the evaluation, they valued one-bedroom flats at N100,000 to N300,000, while some buildings were valued at N50,000.
“They told us they are using the compensation plan of 2013. How can you use a compensation plan from 12 years ago in 2025? Is the price of building materials the same now as it was back then? Is the price of cement in 2013 the same as it is in 2025?”
“Considering the compensation plan If you buy a bag of cement for N3000 in 2013 and now a bag of cement in Gishiri is N9900 do you think you can even do foundation with the merger compensation been given.
“This community is under pressure, some of our parents are in the hospital due to the continuous demolition in the community. Everything we have labored for is gone, we are crying out to the whole world to come to our rescue.
“The demolition matter is in court and the court has already ruled that until the issues are settled no demolition should go on, we are shocked today to see the Minister and his team for demolition. Wike is a lawyer and we expect him to uphold court injunctions.”
Speaking shortly after overseeing the demolition, Wike said that compensation funds had been allocated and a relocation site provided for those affected.
The minister, however, said that the affected residents declined the offer of compensation to relocate.
He said: “This means the job will not go on. We will not allow that. I have been here more than four times.
“We have sat down with the community leaders and told them the need to cooperate with the government so that the contractor will be able to complete the project and hand it over by May.
“The traditional leaders pleaded with us to give them one week. The money for compensation has been made available and we made available somewhere where they can relocate.
“However, with all these assurances, it does appear that work is not going on, and I informed the traditional rulers that this work has to go on.
“If they don’t want it, it is their business.”
The minister, who emphatically declared “enough is enough”, said no government would stand idly by and permit individuals to sabotage a project designed for the public good.
However, luck smiled on the residents on Monday, March 17, when the minister, during a meeting with community members at his official Abuja residence, upgraded the compensation from N655 million to N1.3 billion.
He took this decision after considering the current economic hardship.
During the meeting, the Community members alleged that the FCDA’s Department of Resettlement and Compensation paid a mere N72,000 as compensation, which falls significantly short of the amount approved by the minister.
They further claimed that the department denied compensation to non-indigenes, whose houses were also demolished.
The Minister, visibly enraged by the discrepancies in compensation payments, ordered the Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Territory Development Authority (FCDA), Mr. Richard Dauda, to ensure prompt and full compensation payments to Gishiri Community residents.
He warned him that failure to adhere to the instruction would lead to termination of his appointment.
The minister equally directed the Secretary to ensure non-indigenes also received compensation payments, stressing that the government’s compensation policy is ethnicity-neutral and applies equally to all citizens, regardless of their ethnic background.
He said: “Go and pay people their money, and the exact amount. If you are doing anything, and I find out, you will regret it. Pay people their normal money.
“And I also hear, and I have told you, do not do that, do not tell anybody in this world that they are non-indigenes.
“I have warned you. If I have a property, and a road is passing there, why would you not pay me my money? Why would you say that I am a non-indigene? Where does it work?.
“I built a house, or I built a store, for example, and then a road is passing there. You are telling me you will nkf compensate me that I am a non-indigene? What kind of mentality is that?.
“You people should stop this. I will not do that, I will not. The government does not pay compensation based on where you come from. Compensation is based on who has a property there.”
Persecondnews correspondents, who witnessed the demolition before they were chased away by security operatives, report that residents wailed uncontrollably, desperately scrambling to salvage what remained of their shattered homes and livelihoods as the bulldozers were mobilized to the community.
As the shops, including those selling building materials, phones, phone accessories, and flour, were reduced to rubble, distraught traders stood agape, sobbing over the destruction of their goods and life’s savings.
Security personnel, comprising the Police, Military, and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), who accompanied the minister fired tear gas canisters at the crowd, threatening to open fire further escalating tension.
Many residents, who had already left for work, rushed back home desperate to salvage what was left of their personal belongings.
As the residents grappled with the devastation of their homes and livelihoods, scavengers, known locally as “babanbola,” were seen carting away salvaged materials, including roofing sheets and metals.
Despite the presence of security operatives, the scavengers continued to seize items from the residents, prompting brave individuals to confront them and fight to reclaim their stolen properties.
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