The Federal Housing Authority and the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) have given reasons for demolishing a house belonging to Mr. Joseph Egbri aka Kpokpogri. He is an ex-lover of Nollywood actress Tonto Dike.
TOB learns that on Saturday Joseph Egbri narrated how some officers of FCDA stormed his property within the highbrow Guzape area of Abuja in the wee hours of the morning without notice and began demolishing the property.
Officials of the FHA claimed that Mr Joseph Egbri did not secure approved building plan before erecting the mansion and that he scorned several notices from the agency for him to stop work. The agency said these notices were served at different stages and times of the work, but Mr. Egbri refused to comply.
The Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Development Authority, Engr. Shehu Hadi also noted that the road alignment, which the demolished building obstructed was designed to serve as an important bypass to the Abuja-Keffi axis.
He added that any plan to realign the road because of the building would be difficult and not a fair judgment to those that it would affect, considering that the demolished building was not in existence earlier when the plan started.
Also speaking, the Director, Department of Development Control, Muktar Galadima said the mansion, located in the highbrow District of Guzape, Abuja, was unapproved, and could not be allowed to override public interest.
Galadima noted that the mansion sitting on a rock in the fast-developing district, was an obstruction to a major road network connecting the popular Apo bridge to many parts of the city.
He also denied lack of inter-agency collaboration between FCT Administration and FHA, stating that all necessary communications were properly documented.
“There is adequate inter-agency Corporation, the Federal Housing Authority FHA approached the Federal Capital Territory Administration FCTA for allocation and they were given global approval and were asked to make sure that whatever they do aligns with the approval.
“The plot in question was part of what was in the allocation, but because of the importance of the road, we wrote to FHA, notifying it that a number of their plots had been affected by the realignment of the road, and that we were going to give them replacement plots.
“We told them that no development should be allowed on the plots, and this was around 2019. We came for site visit and had given them noticed. We even marked the building for demolition, but the owner cleaned it off,” Galadima said.
