Nyesom Wike, the former governor of Rivers State and current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has revealed a disheartening experience with the FCT Authority. Wike disclosed how officials from the FCTA issued him three fraudulent Certificates of Occupancy (C of Os) for his land after extorting a staggering sum of N57 million from him.
During a recent gathering with estate developers in Abuja, Wike expressed his dismay at the alarming prevalence of counterfeit C of Os, declaring that moving forward, a legitimate Certificate of Occupancy will only cost N5 million.
Wike recounted, “When I was serving as the governor of Rivers State, we obtained three C of Os from FCT. It later turned out that all three were illegitimate. The C of Os were purportedly issued by the FCTA as a government entity, not as individuals. We made substantial payments for the allocated plots.”
He continued, “Subsequently, I dispatched the Liaison Officer to the land, only for the FCTA representatives to lead him to a counterfeit site. It was a distressing revelation considering the significant sum we had disbursed. The individuals involved vanished without a trace, despite defrauding us of over N57 million. This was the modus operandi within the FCT, but I have unequivocally vowed to end this pattern.”
