Nyesom Wike, the minster of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has revealed that the total outstanding debt for Certificates of Occupancy (C of O) in Nigeria’s capital has surged to an alarming N300 billion.
Wike disclosed this during a media chat on Sunday in Abuja.
The minister said property owners in the territory owed over N300 billion in unpaid Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) fees before his administration initiated measures to recover the debts.
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Wike lamented the lack of compliance by property owners in the FCT, attributing the rising debt to years of negligence and weak enforcement mechanisms.
Wike also provided an update on the territory’s revenue generation, stating that when he assumed office in late 2023, the monthly revenue was between N9 billion and N10 billion. However, he revealed that the current monthly average has now increased to N25 billion.
“When I came, we were generating about N9 to N10 billion monthly. Today we are not generating less than N25 billion. In fact, last month we were able to generate over N40 billion,” he said.
“How do we generate funds without taxes, ground rents? The question residents should ask is whether they are seeing their money working for them. Yes, we are justifying that C of O debts.”
Wike expressed concern over the substantial arrears, stating, “When we calculated the money owed by individuals, not including ground rent but the Certificates of Occupancy (C of O), it exceeded N300 billion. If we manage to recover that N300 billion today, you could travel to America and return in six months, and you would see that the FCT is a completely transformed place.”
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He also lamented that many individuals would request land from the government, receive allocations, but then fail to pay the necessary fees to regularise their titles.
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