Minister of the Federal Capital Territory FCT, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, yesterday vowed to rid the nation’s capital of syndicates who specialise in offering fake Certificates of Occupancy, C of Os, to unsuspecting members of the public.
He recalled how as governor of Rivers State, three fake C of Os were issued on his plot after paying N57 million.
Wike, who disclosed this at a meeting with estate developers in Abuja, also said he had been able to save over N110 billion since he assumed office in August this year.
He expressed displeasure at the rate at which fake Certificates of Occupancy (C of O) were given, adding that henceforth, N5 million would be paid to acquire a C of O.
According to him, gone are the days unsuspecting members of the public were allocated one plot of land with different fake C of Os.
The minister added that he would seek a presidential approval to add the National Identification Number, NIN, to the requirements for obtaining a C of O.
He gave example of when as governor of Rivers State, he was given a fake C of O by some officials of the FCTA, and faulted the payment of N8.9 billion as monthly salary to FCTA, FCDA workers.
The developers unanimously on their part, pleaded with the minister to reduce the N5 million payment for C of O.
After intensive appeal by the developers, the minister said the payment could be made within four months after which the C of O could be handed over to the applicant.