THE IMPACT OF THE MASS DEMOLITION OF PROPERTIES ON THE RENTAL VALUES OF RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES IN ABUJA
(A CASE STUDY OF MPAPE, ABUJA FCT)
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.0 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Every city in the worlds has a master
plan that will direct and guide the development of that city. The aim of
the master plan is to avoid unplanned and mix used of land in the city
so as to achieve orderly development and maximum convenient of beauty in
the city.
So is in this master plan that the topic of discussion (demolition) is alone along presidential Villa – Abuja.
Demolition came into effect in Abuja in
2003 when Mallam Nasiru El-Rufai came into power as a Minister of
Federal Capital Territory during former president life and standard of
an area or city that is affected by unplanned and scattered development
and properties that were illegally developed such as residential,
recreational, commercial, etc will be demolished which Mpape – Abuja is
inclusive. Demolition has cause a lot of harm to individuals,
organization, group of persons, families that fall victim of it. Some
died in the process, some left Abuja entirely due to the lost of their
properties, some were homeless without base, some organization have
closed forever due to effect of demolition on their capital value.
Therefore, the question is, was this
demolition done with due process? And the answer is No, because some
people use political power to victimize their political rivalries.
1.1 STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEMS
The recent demolition along presidential
villa – Abuja has some problem associated with it though bring
necessary evil, a lot of people were displeased, some died as a result
of heart attack, some went mad, just because of the same zero life, they
have to start again after they feel they have made it in life. When
people feel they were at the top of their peak in wealth and later
become miserable, it is better to die then live for some people.
The government could have made provision
to photo-type houses before the demolition, to accommodate the
displayed persons, what the government doing new at ado along Kaduna
road by building photo-type houses to demolish Garki village for
resettlement is a well come development.
1.2 AIM
The aim of this project is to assess the
impact of mass demolition on the rental value of residential properties
in Mpape, Abuja FCT.
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The following are the objectives
- To examine the type of residential properties in Mpape.
- To examine the areas affected by demolition.
- To access the pattern of residential properties and factors affecting it in Mpape.
- To examine the problem associated with residential properties in Mpape.
- To examine the factors influencing the residential value of residential properties in Mpape.
1.3 SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS
The scope of the study will be limited
to the Impact of the Mass Demolition of Properties on the Rental Values
of Residential Properties in Abuja, Mpape precisely.
Limitation of the study arises as a
result of limited finance, time for completion of the project and access
to some relevant data.
1.4 JUSTIFICATION FOR THE STUDY
This study does not merely serve as a
requirement for the award of national diploma but also serve as an
instrument for knowing the impact of mass demolition of properties in
Abuja on rental values of residential properties with particular
reference to Mpape in Abuja. It is also among the significance of this
research work to:
- Guides prospective developers or investors of residential properties in the study area on the GRA location to invest.
- Aid a decision making concerning residential properties in Mpape, Abuja.
1.5 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF STUDY AREA
Mpape is largely an informal settlement
located in the hills just outside the expressway that circles the
Federal Capital Territory (FCT) of Abuja. With a population that
residents estimate to be around 1.8-2 million inhabitants, it has grown
swiftly from a village to major city in the space of just about 30
years.
While there is a small “indigene” population of native Gwari / Gbagyi,
the vast majority of inhabitants are so-called “settlers” who have
moved to Mpape during recent decades because of its relative
affordability and proximity to employment opportunities in Abuja. Some
of the “settlers” were also resettled to Mpape following the demolition
of districts such as Wuse and Garki within the FCT to make way for the
implementation of the “Abuja Master Plan.”
For decades, Mpape has also been home to
a number of major mining sites owned by major construction companies –
Berger, Arab Contractors, Crushed Rock, et al – which benefit from most
Federal Government contracts for road and other infrastructure projects
in Abuja and across Nigeria. Indeed, many Mpape districts derive their
names from that of the closest company, i.e. “Berger Quarry Road I,”
“Berger Quarry Road II,” and “Arab Village.”
Neglected by planning or regulatory
authorities for decades, residential areas in Mpape lie side-by-side
with mining companies’ blasting sites and over the years have suffered
the expected consequences – roofs blown off, damage to structural
integrity, etc. Aside from building access roads to their sites that
double for residents’ use and providing benefits to a few (i.e.
traditional “indigene” rulers) in exchange for political favors, these
companies have done little to help develop Mpape’s infrastructure –
although they have done more than government.
What infrastructure does exist in Mpape –
electricity, water, roads, schools, health clinics and other community
facilities – is primarily the product of residents’ self-help efforts.
Residents’ associations have sprung up over the year for different areas
of Mpape to collect levies among neighbors and collectively invest in
transformers and other electricity infrastructure, build and maintain
roads, build schools, etc. Residents report that Mpape pays N14m each
month for electricity from the Power Holding Corporation of Nigeria
(PHCN, formerly NEPA) – dwarfing the monthly revenues from Abuja itself.
Residents even contribute to bring security to Mpape, recently donating
a building for a new police station in a previously un-served area.
The tragedy of Mpape is that, despite
all this collective investment and communal effort, the vast majority of
residents – like most Nigerians – lack security of tenure.
Early settlers claim they were encouraged to move to Mpape by previous
FCT administrations. Most purchased their land for good value from
“indigenes” who have traditional title to land. Many have over the years
paid various land use-related fees to the local government as well as
the FCT. Despite all of this, the FCT government has refused formal
recognition to Mpape residents’ land ownership.
In July 2012, the FCT Minister Bala
Mohammed announced by radio and television that his administration
intended to demolish 19 villages around Abuja including the entirety of
Mpape. Numerous houses were marked in different areas of Mpape including
Ajegunle, Eneje, Mashafa, Area 1, G.R.A., etc. Community members report
a sudden influx of police and military presence within Mpape during
that time of crisis.
Beyond the share magnitude, the
threatened demolition is also discriminatory as it explicitly targets
the houses of settlers, not of indigenes, irrespective of who actually
holds legal title to land. This divisive tactic, which encourages
traditional rulers and indigenes to sell out their neighbors and persons
to whom they previously sold land, has characterized the FCT
Administration’s approach to demolitions of numerous human settlements
since the creation of the FCT.
The people of Mpape were quick to
respond led by an umbrella group called the Mpape Residents Association.
The group contacted the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC),
organized a peaceful protest to the National Assembly, and got the
threatened demolition into the national and international media,
including Al Jazeera, the BBC, and Voice of America.
A team of lawyers led by the well-known human rights lawyer, Femi
Falana, has also been litigating a case challenging the legality of the
threatened demolition since August 2012.
RAINFALL
In the summer/raining season (August to
October) s got hurried air from Atlantic drift into Abuja from the south
west by July the outline country is corned in hurried air, the rainfall
from about mid–march until about mid-October. Houses can fell doing
during this period. In the writer, the harmattan a mass of cold day air
from the desert crosses the country. The hire dusty haze that the
harmattan brings can last for weeks or months. The harmattan winds die
down by the end of farming and day season finishes around the end of
March of middle of august. The major agricultural products of the
inhabitants are:
DEVELOPMENT OF ABUJA
The 1979 master plan called for Abuja to
be developer in four phases. It estimated a population of about
1.6million by the year 2000 and maximum population of 3,000,000 well
into 21st century. Nearly the entire phase 1 development has
been completed and includes the following; the central business
district, the three arms done (presidency, national assembly and Supreme
Court) as well as maintains, Wuse, business districts. Most of the
diplomatic mission have relocated to Abuja from Lagos, some are using
temporary building and residences while their permanent structures are
being built the Bwari district Gwarinpa district, where many of the
construction companies “life camps” is located has also been developed
but has outside the phase eves, construction of sources companies and
enterprises continue to at a fast price in Abuja and now places open
weekly, phase 2 under development currently, involves the integration of
surrounding Katampe, Mabushi, Utako, Wuse, Durumi, Gudu, Jabi, Dutse
and Galadima areas into a city, phase 3 and 4 have not yet been fully
planned.
Unfortunately some of the initial
infrastructural facilities are now being ever stretched. The government
is aware of these challenges and is working to rectify the disparity.
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