FCT Minister Nyesom Wike cancels 485 land documents in Abuja after verification reveals forgeries and failed authenticity checks

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has cancelled 485 land documents in Abuja after they failed official verification checks and were confirmed to be forged. The decision was approved by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

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The cancellations follow a comprehensive review by the Department of Land Administration in partnership with the Abuja Geographic Information Systems (AGIS). A public notice issued on Monday, marked Batch I, informed applicants who submitted Area Council land documents for regularisation that the invalid applications had been removed from the official database.

“This is to inform the general public, particularly applicants who submitted Area Council land documents for regularisation, that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory has approved the nullification or cancellation of applications that failed the necessary official checks for genuineness and have been confirmed to be fake,” the notice read.

The affected documents span multiple Area Councils and layouts.

In the Bwari Area Council, locations include Ushafa Village Expansion Scheme, Ushafa Extension, and Dawaki Extension 1.

In the Abuja Municipal Area Council, districts affected include Kurudu-Jikwoyi Relocation, Kurudu Commercial, Karu Village Extension, Nyanya Phase IV Extension, Jikwoyi Residential, Sabon Lugbe, and Lugbe I Extension. Kuchiyako One layout in Kuje Area Council was also listed.

Organisations affected include the Redeemed Christian Church of God and the Ministry of Justice Staff Multi-purpose Cooperative Society.

Under Nigerian law, all land within the FCT is vested in the Federal Government, and Certificates of Occupancy and other land titles must be processed through the Office of the FCT Minister and formalised by AGIS.

The cancellations are part of ongoing reforms by the FCTA to tackle forged documents, double allocations, and irregular grants issued by some Area Councils.

The reforms were accelerated last year after the FCTA revealed that only 8,287 out of 261,914 Area Council land documents submitted between 2006 and 2023 had been screened.

This represents just 3.2 per cent of submissions, leaving 253,627 applications pending in the database.

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Officials said the cancellation of the 485 forged documents is a decisive step toward improving transparency and credibility in Abuja’s land administration system.