FCTA demolishes encroachments on road corridors

As part of efforts to ensure the free flow of traffic within the nation’s capital, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) yesterday demolished all encroachments on roads corridors in Dutse Alhaji, in Bwari Area Council.

This according to the Chairman, Ministerial Tasks Team on Free Flow of Traffic, Ikharo Attah, will not only help in opening the traffic for commuters, but will also help in ensuring that contractors return to site on the road.

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Explaining further, Attah said after advancing payments for the construction of the Dutse Alhaji-Bwari Road, the administration received series of complaints from contractors that some individuals requested for N100 million as compensation before they can be allowed to work on the road, a development FCTA strongly frowned against.

“Before now, Dutse Alhaji use to have gridlock caused by the contractor’s working in the road. The contractors called us that they will not be able to work from the Dutse stretch to after the first gate.

“They told us that some people demanded settlement from them before they could work on the road. We felt that was wrong because the road belongs to the Federal Capital Territory Administration.

“The people claimed to have had an agreement to run a parking space in the market and demanded that the contractors should pay them N100 million.

“So, we went there early in the morning and cleared the entire alignment stretch. We had to touch one of the ATM there because it was wrongly located in contravention with the plan. We also touched a particular fence belonging to a religious organisation that was on the road.

“Immediately we were done, we called the contractor and told him to quickly speed up the work so that residents will not suffer because of traffic gridlock in that area,” Attah stated.

While revealing that those demanding for compensation had an agreement with the Bwari Area Council to manage the parking space along the road corridor, Attah noted that the alleged agreement cannot stand considering the fact that the land in question is FCTA’s property.

“The agreement they had with Bwari Area Council cannot stand on an FCTA property because it did not affect the market parking space. Anything before the electric pole is part of the road alignment,” he stated.

Speaking on the interest group who wanted to be compensated, Attah maintained that the road does not belong to Bwari Area Council and as such the FCTA is not bound by the agreement.

He also revealed that the said agreement signed with the former Bwari Area Council chairman had a clause that “at the point of revocation or termination of the contract, the area council will not be obliged to pay anything.”