By DAVID ADUGE-ANI

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has uncovered irregularities and infractions in the sale of Federal Government houses in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

According to the administration, these irregularities include deviation from the approved mandate, improper verifications, late payments, inadequate documentation, poor interdepartmental coordination, and other specific infractions.

FCT Director of Land Administration, Chijioke Nwankwoeze, who disclosed this in Abuja over the weekend, said that the FCT Minister, Barrister Nyesom Wike, has approved the constitution of a vetting committee on the sale of the houses.

Nwankwoeze added that Wike has also approved the establishment of another committee to oversee the titling of designated park plots as well as the management of allied land parcels in the nation’s capital.

While inaugurating the vetting committees in his office in Abuja, the Director explained that the minister had approved the committees’ formation with clear directives, mandates, and terms of reference to ensure that all processes are completed within a reasonable timeframe.

Nwankwoeze further added that the vetting team on the sale of Federal Government houses is expected to restore order, accountability, and transparency in line with the original 2003–2005 monetization and sales policy framework of the Federal Government.

He also disclosed that the vetting team on the titling of designated park plots is meant to align the activities of the Department of Parks and Recreation with the current land reform policies of the FCT Administration.

According to the Director, the setting up of the vetting committees was a bold and irreversible step toward restoring sanity and public trust in the FCTA.

He emphasized that the government has deployed machinery to put to rest all lingering issues surrounding the sale of Federal Government houses and designated park plots in the territory.

In a statement by the Assistant Director, Information and Customer Service, FCT Land Administration, Badaru Yakasai, the Director expressed confidence that the committees would ensure sanitation in the system and restore public confidence.

“This is because the FCT Minister has the ‘political will’ to drive it to a logical conclusion, and this forms part of the aspirations of the ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” he stressed.