Nigerian House of Reps gives FCTA September 28 deadline over Abuja demolitions
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The House of Representatives Public Petitions Committee has given the FCTA until September 28 to appear over the demolition of houses in Tungamaje, Abuja, after its Director of Lands missed two scheduled hearings.
The House of Representatives Public Petitions Committee has given the Federal Capital Territory Administration until September 28 to appear before it over the demolition of houses in the Tungamaje area of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
The ultimatum followed the failure of the FCTA's Office of Land Administration to send a representative - reportedly expected to be the Director of Lands - to a meeting convened by the committee to address demolitions allegedly carried out by the Nigerian Army. The committee had summoned both the FCTA and the Nigerian military as part of efforts to intervene in the prolonged dispute involving land ownership, evictions and the demolition of residential buildings.
Members of the committee were angered by the continued failure of the FCTA Director of Lands to honour its invitations, sources familiar with the matter said. A meeting previously scheduled for September 3 could not hold after the Director of Lands failed to appear.
According to SaharaReporters, the Nigerian Army carried out fresh demolitions in Tungamaje on August 20, 2026, destroying more than 10 houses and warning residents against constructing new houses or carrying out further development on their properties. Residents of the Angwa Dio and Angwa Shibaba communities had earlier been ordered to vacate, initially by August 8, 2026, with a five-day extension to August 12 following an intervention by stakeholders. A community source said more than 30 houses were earmarked for demolition across the two communities.
The dispute is not new. In May 2026, residents of Tungamaje raised the alarm over what they described as the forceful eviction of people from their ancestral lands by personnel of the Nigerian Army, with disagreements reportedly centred on land ownership and access to farmlands in the area.
The latest summons comes amid renewed demolition activity in Tungamaje, with residents expressing fears that more houses could be destroyed and looking to the House of Representatives hearing for possible intervention.