SCANDAL! Obasanjo, Jonathan, Alison-Madueke, El-Rufai, Others Named In Abuja Land Grab

Former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan as well as ministers who served under them will be probed by the Senate for violation of the master plan of the nation’s capital city and allegedly appropriating reserved plots of land in Abuja.

Addressing journalists, yesterday, Chairman, Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory, Senator Dino Melaye (APC, Kogi West), who did not exempt any former Minister of the FCT or President in the proposed probe, said as a government of change, it was prepared to send any one found guilty to Kuje Prison which he said was not far from the Federal Capital City.
Melaye, while condemning what he described as the bastardization of Abuja Masterplan, however, expressed worry over why former FCT ministers allocated green areas designed for flood drains, city buffers, recreations, urban farming, reserved land and undevelopable areas to themselves and their friends.

The probe may also be extended to former Presidents because by the law establishing the FCT, the President is the governor-general of FCT who appoints a minister to administer the city on his behalf.

Melaye said: “With this administration of change, it is no longer going to be business as usual. Permit me to remind FCT administration again by stating that this committee will not hesitate to ensure that all administrative anomalies, misappropriation of funds or misapplication of laws as the case may be, occasioned by the past administrations of FCT, are fully addressed.

Describing the action of Jonathan and his ministers as “satanic”, Melaye blamed the immediate past former Minister of the FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed, for the “indiscretion”.

Besides Jonathan, the committee listed other beneficiaries of the “land grab” to include former Petroleum Minister Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke and former Justice Minister Mohammed Adoke.

Other beneficiaries include former Trade and Investment Minister Olusegun Aganga; Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Uche Secondus and FCT Executive Director Ismaila Adamu.

Some of the beneficiaries have started erecting structures on the plots, which were “hurriedly allocated” in the twilight of the last administration. Certificates of Occupancy were hurriedly issued for the plots, the committee alleged.