Residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), especially those having a backlog of unpaid ground rents on their properties, are now waiting with bated breath for the next move by the FCT Administration.
Daily Trust reports that the 14-day grace period approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the defaulters to pay up their rents expired on Monday, June 16.
Our correspondent reports that over 4,700 properties were revoked by the FCT Administration for failure to pay ground rents ranging between 10 and 43 years.
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The administration had started sealing off the affected properties before President Tinubu intervened, approving a 14-day grace period for the affected defaulters to pay up.
They were, however, fined between N2 million and N5 million, depending on the location of the defaulting property, in addition to the amount being owed as ground rent.
A source at the Abuja Geographical Information System (AGIS) confirmed that the 14-day grace ended on Monday, but that there has not been a further directive on the next step to pursue.
The AGIS’s top officer, who sought anonymity, said many of the defaulters had paid up but declined to confirm whether notable offices such as those of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, the Peoples Democratic Party head office, and Ibro Hotels, which were earlier sealed up, have paid.
Our correspondent, who was at the AGIS’s office yesterday, saw many people still struggling to pay, and some officers of the agency were seen addressing them on how to make the payment.
Some of those spoken to said they were there to pay for their principals.
‘’I am here to pay for my office. I have been coming since last Friday, but hopefully it will be over today,’’ he said.
Asked if his office is among those earlier sealed by the administration, he said, ’Yes, but I will not tell you the office.”
Although the Special Assistant on Public Communication and Social Media to the FCT Minister, Lere Olayinka, did not respond to a WhatsApp message sent to him yesterday, he had earlier told our reporter that the payments were being done online through Remita and it would be difficult to know who and who had paid at this stage.
The source at the AGIS also said there had been no instruction to stop the payment, adding that payment continues until there are contrary directives from the higher authorities.
Daily Trust reports that properties belonging to individuals, business entities, foreign missions, government and political parties were among those earlier sealed by the Wike-led FCT administration.
Some of the defaulters earlier published by the administration included the Federal Inland Revenue Service, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the National Agency for Human Trafficking, 39 foreign embassies, and properties belonging to the Central Bank of Nigeria, among others.
However, a source within the AGIS said none of the foreign embassy said to have defaulted would be sealed.
The source said, ‘’All foreign embassies were covered under the international convention and by this, are exempted from some these things.’’
The foreign affairs ministry had also assured that the situation involving the foreign embassies as regard to the ground rent would be resolved amicably.
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