FCTA begins profiling of ‘kidnapping hotspots’ in Abuja

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) says it has commenced profiling of areas worst hit by the kidnappings in Abuja.

Speaking during the exercise on Tuesday, Mukhtar Galadima, FCTA director of development control, said the profiling would help determine causes of the abductions and recommend solutions.

Recently, there has been an uptick in abductions in some Abuja council areas.

Six sisters and their father were abducted by gunmen in the Bwari area council of Abuja.

Many residents of the Sagwari Layout Estate, Dutse in Bwari area council, were also abducted by gunmen.

Galadima, who was represented by Hassan Ogbole, deputy director of monitoring and enforcement, said the officials would be collaborating with security operatives to identify buildings without authorisation.

He said the officials would also identify illegal activities in the areas.

“The exercise is a fact-finding mission and part of the department’s periodic monitoring of developments,” NAN quoted him as saying.

“We observed the recent growing chain of illegal developments within the ecological sensitive zone to the lower Usuma Dam, which is supposed to be a secured side.

“Activities of illegal developers are a threat to the FCT Administration and to the dam. On several occasions, we have taken steps to carry out enforcement but they remained unabated.

“The government will not condone this. In physical planning, there are places that we reserve, these are reserved areas.

“So, we will put up our report and recommendations to the appropriate quarters and see what could be done.”

Peter Olumuji, secretary of the command and control centre, department of security services, FCTA, said illegal activities of the locals are contributing to abductions in the areas.

“What we have seen here shows the level of insensitivity from the village chief,” he said.

“Most of the people we interacted with said they got the lands from the village chief with no concern about the safety of lives and property within the area.

“This mountain site that we visited is where some people were kidnapped. We have accessed the mountain site and based on the position of development control, it is against the planning template.

“People must also stop buying land from village chiefs. They don’t have the power in FCT to sell land. They are only interested in the monetary gain and not the safety of the people.”