Officials of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), have narrated how armed naval personnel allegedly threatened to open fire on staff of the Development Control Department during a lawful enforcement operation at Gaduwa District, Abuja.
Naijaonpoint reports that the incident occurred on Tuesday when officials moved to seal what they described as an illegal construction site reportedly linked to a former Chief of Naval Staff.
Speaking during the FCTA Executive Council meeting, the Director of Development Control, Mukhtar Galadima, said his team visited the site to verify title documents and building approvals but met stiff and hostile resistance.
Galadima disclosed that the operatives guarding the site threatened to shoot his officers when they demanded to see legal documents authorising the ongoing construction along the Southern Parkway corridor.
“We noticed armed men strategically positioned, ready to shoot. That was why I called the Honourable Minister for an on-the-spot assessment,” he said.
The director said the developers failed to produce any valid title or building approval.
Recounting earlier engagements, Galadima explained that his team first discovered the construction during a routine monitoring exercise on October 17.
According to him, the developers initially claimed that their documents were with their “lawyers and engineers.”
“When I insisted on seeing the documents, the engineer later sent what turned out to be a mere letter of intent for the development and maintenance of a park allocated to Santos Estate Village in 2007. That is not a title document or an approval,” he said.
After failed attempts to secure compliance, the matter was escalated to the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, who directed that work on the site must stop.
Galadima said fears for the safety of his officers prompted him to inform the minister directly.
He recalled past incidents where Development Control personnel were attacked or killed during demolition and enforcement exercises.
“I apologise sincerely to him and to all Nigerians for the unfortunate incident, but the development in question remains illegal because there is no title or approval backing it,” he added.
Supporting the Development Control team’s position, the Director of Land Administration, Chijioke Nwankwoeze, said Santos Estate Limited never had a statutory land title for the plot in question.
Nwankwoeze clarified that the company only held a letter of intent issued in 2007 by the Department of Parks and Recreation, a document that does not confer ownership or development rights.
“In the FCT, the only document that gives title to land is a statutory right of occupancy. A letter of intent is not a title. It only allows temporary access to the land,” he stressed.
Nwankwoeze revealed that the letter of intent issued to Santos came with strict conditions, including, submission of a technical design within 21 days, commencement and completion of development within one year after approval
He added that a subsequent review of park allocations led to the withdrawal of all such letters of intent in June 2025, a decision already approved by the FCT Minister.
Despite this, some allottees, including Santos Estate, moved into the areas to build housing estates and hotels, contrary to the original land use designation.
Nwankwoeze concluded that the company has no legal foundation for its claims.
“The claims by Santos about ownership are false. They neither have a statutory right of occupancy nor development approval. What they possess was revoked, and their attempt to convert the area for residential and commercial use was rejected years ago,” he said.
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