The federal capital territory administration (FCTA) on Monday sealed an Access Bank branch and a Total petrol station located in Abuja’s Wuse district over non-payment of ground rent.
The FCT administration said the property being occupied by the Access Bank is owing 34 years ground rent.
According to a notice of revocation of the right of occupancy served to the owner of the property dated March 1, 2025, there have been many publications by the FCTA since 2023 in several national dailies and electronic media requesting allottees of plots in Abuja to pay their outstanding ground rent.
The closures follow a major FCTA crackdown in which 4,794 land titles in key areas of Abuja, including Wuse, Maitama, Asokoro, and Garki, were recently cancelled due to unpaid ground rent that had been outstanding for more than ten years.
FCTA officials estimate that 8,375 property owners, some of whom have been in arrears for more than 40 years, owe around N6.97 billion in ground rent.
The revocations were in accordance with section 28(5) of the Land Use Act, which gives the government the authority to recover land from titleholders who do not fulfil the requirements of their occupation rights, according to FCT Minister Nyesom Wike.
