THE current demolition drive by the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, is sending shockwaves through the investor community, with several firms and individuals saying they won’t place their bet on the city’s properties any time soon.
Since his 2023 appointment, Mr Wike has embarked on demolitions of properties without requisite papers or those built at inappropriate locations to revive the city’s allure as the federal capital. Like a former Minister of the FCT, Mr Nasir El-Rufai, Mr Wike’s buldozers have gone on demolition spree, destroying buildings belonging to individuals from army generals to top politicians.
But the manner in which the demolitions are being carried out is a major worry for people willing to invest in the federal capital, as they note that it creates uncertainty.
“I am out of Abuja properties for now,” said head of Materials Housing, Mr Don Stewart, a London-based real estate firm. “You can wake up one morning to find your real estate is gone. No investor would be comfortable in that kind of environment,” he added.
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A local investor, who owns more than 20 residential real estates in Nigeria, Mr Chike Achigbo, said Mr Wike’s “belligerent attitude towards the real estate sector in the FCT is a cause for concern.”
“Most of the buildings that are being revoked or destroyed today were once approved by the Federal Capital Territory Authority (FCTA). But when a minister comes and demolishes them suddenly, it sends a signal that one’s investments aren’t safe here. This is why we are not investing in Abuja for now.”
Several allegations of land grabbing have been levelled against Mr Wike, but he has denied all of them. In 2024, a rights activist, Chief Rita Lori-Ogbebor, had alleged the revocation of the ownership of a property belonging to her late husband, Col. Paul Ogbebor (rtd), in Abuja, by Minister Wike.
She alleged that the estate, located in the Life Camp area in the FCT, belonged to Paulosa Nigeria Limited, a company owned by Col. Ogbebor, a civil war hero and one of the first-generation officers in the Nigerian Army.
“My husband went to Abuja and worked there. He wasn’t a land grabber. My husband was among those whose sweat contributed in building the Abuja we have today. He gave people hope to come to Abuja. He never collected any land. My husband got his land rightfully like any other Nigerian,” she said.
Mr Wike’s aide, Mr Lere Olayinka, had dismissed her claims as ’emotional’ and ‘sentiment-driven.’
Mr Wike had an alternation with a naval officer last week, describing him as a fool for stopping him and his team from accessing a property belonging to a general. Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) described Mr Wike’s behaviour at the scene as ‘reckless and uncivil.’
Minister of State for Defence, Mr Bello Matawalle, defended Brigadier Ahmad Yarima, who prevented Mr Wike from accessing his senior’s property, saying Mr Wike should have spken with him or his senior minister.
“The officers have superiors, and he (Wike) is our colleague. If there’s anything at all, he should have contacted us. And what the officer did was based on order. The officer followed the order, and he was respectful,” Mr Matawlle noted.
In March 2025, Wike approved the revocation of 4,794 land titles in the FCT over non-payment of ground rent estimated at N6.9 billion for more than 40 years. He marked his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s Wadata Plaza in Wuse 2, Abuja, up for demolition, but the building and several others have been spared.
“For now, we have stopped putting our money in Abuja and Lagos,” said U.S.-based real estate investor, Mr Owen Obhiosa. “Both cities have good potential, but they are high-risk. Your properties in both cities can be demolished without notice. No investor can afford to lose their money overnight like that. These things aren’t happening anywhere in the world, except in Nigeria.”
He provided a piece of advice for Mr Wike and Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu. “If you must destroy people’s investments, then set up a panel that will review their documents. Remove the minister from the panel because I think he is too politically exposed. Allow the panel to make its investigations and recommendations. This is the only way you can restore confidence in Abuja reak estate again,”he counselled.
“What we have seen is that Abuja properties are being used for political vendetta and witch-hunting, which scares investors.”
