The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike has approved the cancellation of 485 land documents issued through Area Councils in Abuja after they failed official verification checks and were confirmed to be forged.
The decision was announced in a public notice jointly released by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) Department of Land Administration and the Abuja Geographic Information Systems (AGIS). The notice advised affected applicants and the public to take note, stating that the revoked applications did not meet required authenticity standards.
According to the statement, the cancelled documents will be removed from the regularisation database maintained by the FCTA and AGIS. The publication listed the names of affected applicants, along with their file numbers, layouts, and respective Area Councils. It added that the action was taken with the minister’s approval and may be followed by further notices if necessary.
The affected properties are spread across several districts and satellite communities within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). In Bwari Area Council, impacted layouts include Ushafa Village Expansion Scheme, Ushafa Extension, and Dawaki Extension 1. In Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), the cancellations cover 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 is also affected.
Land administration in the FCT is governed by national law, with ownership vested in the Federal Government of Nigeria. All land titles, including Statutory Rights of Occupancy and Certificates of Occupancy (C of O), must be issued under the authority of the FCT minister and formally registered through AGIS.
In recent years, authorities in Abuja have grappled with widespread issues such as forged land titles, double allocations, and improperly authorised Area Council allocations. Cases have also involved falsified survey plans, forged signatures, and organised land fraud schemes.
Earlier in 2025, the FCTA renewed its push for the submission and verification of Area Council land documents, revealing that only a small percentage of thousands of applications submitted since 2006 had successfully passed vetting. A 60-day ultimatum was issued, urging landholders to regularise their documents, complete outstanding payments, and comply with statutory requirements or risk losing their claims.
While previous enforcement efforts largely targeted non-payment of ground rent, C-of-O fees, and other statutory charges, the cancellation of the 485 documents is specifically linked to confirmed forgery and failure to meet authenticity standards rather than issues of default or land development.