The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has announced that it will begin a major enforcement exercise next week, targeting property owners who have defaulted in the payment of ground rents, Certificate of Occupancy (C-of-O) fees and land use conversion charges.
The Director of Land Administration, Chijioke Nwankwoeze, disclosed this on Wednesday after the first FCTA Executive Council meeting of 2026, chaired by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
Nwankwoeze said the enforcement drive would involve the sealing of affected properties and the revocation of land titles, warning that defaulters would not be spared.
He explained that the exercise would focus particularly on properties that were originally allocated for residential use but had been illegally converted to commercial purposes in high-profile areas of the capital.
According to him, locations to be affected include Aminu Kano Crescent and Adetokunbo Ademola Crescent in Wuse, as well as several streets in Garki Areas 7 and 8.
The director noted that while the FCTA had reviewed and agreed to regularise some of the conversions in line with existing planning standards, many property owners had failed to pay the statutory fees required for such changes.
“Land was given for residential purposes, but you converted it to a bank. You are collecting money from banks every day, but you don’t want to pay the FCTA its due,” Nwankwoeze said.
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He stressed that ground rents for commercial properties differ from those for residential buildings, adding that owners must pay both the conversion fees and the adjusted annual ground rents.
“There will be no sacred cows in Phase 1 and Phase 2,” he warned.
Nwankwoeze also disclosed that the 2026 enforcement exercise would be broader than that of 2025, which focused mainly on ground rents, as the administration is determined to improve compliance and boost internally generated revenue in the FCT.
The FCTA has repeatedly warned property owners to regularise their documentation and settle outstanding payments to avoid sanctions.
