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From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has expanded its renewed Operation Sweep beyond Abuja’s central districts, launching enforcement actions in satellite communities to remove illegal settlements and uncompleted buildings alleged to shelter criminals.
Secretary of the FCTA Command and Control Centre, Peter Olumuji, said the campaign has shifted focus to “black spots” on the outskirts after receiving intelligence linking those areas to rising criminality. The enforcement team visited Wassa on Friday as part of the suburban sweep.
“We have received a lot of intelligence reports about crime and criminality in these areas. Some of these locations have served as safe havens for criminal elements,” Olumuji told reporters on site. “That is why we are taking proactive steps to clear these hideouts and improve security across the FCT.”
Olumuji listed other targeted communities, including Karasana, Kugbo, Jikwoyi and Karshi, and said many structures had previously been marked for removal by Development Control. “When you look at this critically, Development Control had already marked this place since February 25 this year. Enough notice was given to residents to vacate the area,” he added.
Officials said community leaders were engaged and occupants sensitised before enforcement began. “Wassa is not in the city centre, yet we are here. The more we remove these hideouts, the more we improve security in the FCT,” Olumuji said, stressing that the drive would continue into border towns and other fast-growing outskirts.
Head of Enforcement at the Social Development Secretariat (SDS), Ukachi Adebayo, said the operation also includes social interventions for vulnerable people found in targeted locations. “We have evacuated over 800 destitute persons from different parts of Abuja,” she said. “After evacuating them, we profile them and take them to our centre where we care for and train them before reintegrating them back into society.”
Adebayo acknowledged operational hurdles but said rehabilitation remained a priority alongside enforcement.
Local leaders welcomed the move. Garzali Umar, chairman of the Wassa community, supported the clear-out, saying transient occupants and suspicious movements had long worried residents. “Many of those found in informal settlements here are unknown to both residents and security agencies,” Umar said, calling the operation “necessary for community safety.”
The FCTA said it would continue combining enforcement with social profiling and rehabilitation as Operation Sweep extends into Abuja’s suburban belt.
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