Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, has declared 485 Area Council land documents in Abuja invalid due to their failure to pass formal verification procedures and confirmation that many applications were fraudulent.
The Departments of Land Administration and Abuja Geographic Information Systems of the Federal Capital Territory Administration published a public notice announcing the decision.
The letter stated that applications that “failed the necessary official checks for genuineness and have been confirmed to be fake” were canceled with the minister’s approval.
It further stated that the impacted applications would be eliminated from the FCTA Departments of AGIS and Land Administration’s regularization database.
“This is to notify the public, especially those who applied for regularization of Area Council land documents, that the Federal Capital Territory Minister has authorized the cancellation or nullification of applications that have been verified to be fraudulent after failing the required official checks for authenticity,” the notice stated.
The action was “without prejudice to further notices and/or publications,” according to the newspaper, which listed the impacted applicants by name, file number, layout, and area council.
The revoked documents cover a number of FCT districts and satellite towns.
The Ushafa Village Expansion Scheme, Ushafa Extension, and Dawaki Extension 1 are among the layouts in the Bwari Area Council that are impacted.
Kurudu-Jikwoyi Relocation, Kurudu Commercial, Karu Village Extension, Nyanya Phase IV Extension, Jikwoyi Residential, Sabon Lugbe, and Lugbe I Extension are among the affected areas in the Abuja Municipal Area Council.
The Kuje Area Council’s Kuchiyako One layout is also included in the list of impacted regions.
According to the Land Use Act of 1978, the Federal Government owns all land in the FCT. Titles like Statutory Right of Occupancy and Certificate of Occupancy are granted by the FCT minister and recorded using AGIS.
Fake or fabricated land titles, duplicate allocations, unapproved Area Council allocations, and land speculation schemes including falsified certifications and erroneous survey plans have all been problems for the government in recent years.
The FCTA stepped up its efforts to regularize Area Council land records earlier in 2025. It gave a 60-day deadline for submission and compliance and warned that noncompliance might lead to revocation.
However, rather than non-payment of fees or non-development of allotted land, the most recent nullification seems to be explicitly connected to verified examples of forgery and lack of authenticity.
