THE Federal Capital Territory Administration under the leadership of Nyesom Wike has warned owners of event centres, hotels, and other public facilities in the Federal Capital Territory against allowing their premises to be used by illegal organisations or unrecognised political party leaderships.
News Point Nigeria reports that FCTA stated that title documents of any event centre, hotel, or public building used for gatherings organised by illegal groups would be revoked.
The warning was contained in a statement issued on Friday by Lere Olayinka.
According to the statement, the directive forms part of ongoing efforts to strengthen security in the nation’s capital and support the operations of security agencies.
“In view of the need to further ensure the security of lives and properties in the FCT and sustain the efforts of security agencies in this regard, usage of Event Centres, Hotels and other public buildings will now be closely monitored,” the statement read.
The administration explained that the move was aimed at preventing such facilities from being used by illegal organisations for gatherings capable of disrupting peace within the Federal Capital Territory.
“This is aimed at ensuring that they are not used by illegal organizations for gatherings capable of disrupting the peace of the nation’s capital,” the statement added.
The FCTA further urged owners and operators of event centres, hotels, and similar facilities to verify the legality of organisations seeking to rent their premises and to properly understand the purpose of such gatherings before granting approval.
The statement particularly warned operators of event centres and hotels to deal only with leaderships of political parties recognised by the Independent National Electoral Commission, especially during the ongoing political season.
“For instance, in this political season, owners of Event Centres and Hotels in particular must ensure that they only deal with Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) recognised leadership of political parties in respect of the use of their facilities, and proper records of transactions must be kept,” the statement said.
The administration warned that failure to comply with the directive would attract severe sanctions, including revocation of title documents of affected properties.
“Failure to comply with this directive will result to revocation of the title documents such properties,” the statement added.
The FCTA also stressed that lands allocated within the Federal Capital Territory are meant strictly for lawful activities.