ABUJA: Wike Issues Final Warning To Ground Rent Debtors

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has again warned property owners to pay up their ground rents or risk revocation after a final two-week grace which started on Monday.

The minister issued the warning during an inspection of ongoing projects on Monday, where he declared a two-week grace period for the settlement of ground rents.

The areas inspected includes the Vice President’s residence under construction by Julius Berger; the Asokoro and Area 1 roundabouts on the Outer Southern Expressway being constructed by CGC; Wuye Bridge under construction by Arab Contractors Limited; and road D6 and B12, also handled by Julius Berger.

Wike expressed satisfaction with the pace of work, saying: “I think we are quite optimistic that with the speed of work, and taking advantage of the weather, we believe that by May 29, these projects will be ready.”

Speaking on the financial aspect, he urged residents to understand that government operations heavily rely on tax for revenue.

“It is very key for us to understand that without payment of taxes, it will be very difficult for us to carry out most of these gigantic projects. If we don’t have the money, there is nothing we can do. Again, like we have always said to the elite, they want roads, they want good environment, they want streetlights everywhere; government does not print money. Government needs to tax people and then use that money for the development of the area.”

Addressing the issue of overdue ground rents, Wike noted that the deadline initially set for December 14th was extended by an additional two weeks.

He, however, cautioned that after the grace period, title documents could be revoked for those who fail to comply.

“So, I will always plead with everybody that they should try as much as they can, to pay their ground rents. We have published the last set of those who are still owing the one for 2023. We gave them till 14th of December last year, after which we were going to revoke. But we are human, we believe that the ethics will not be as good as people expect, well we have extended it to another two weeks, after which we will have no choice if you don’t pay, but to revoke the title documents”, he said.

The minister added that despite the economic challenges facing the country, his administration was committed to ensuring prompt payment of project funds to contractors.

“Whether inflation or not, that is why we are here, to solve problems. With the taxes people pay, we try as much as we can, to allocate it to the priority projects. Again, we don’t allow variation. Why? Because we also try to pay as at when due, so the issue of variation does not come in”, he added.