Wike to ASUU: You have no authority over FCTA land
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has dismissed threats of legal action and industrial strike by the Abuja chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) over the alleged takeover of portions of the University of Abuja’s land.
Wike said the union had no authority over land administration in the nation’s capital, insisting that such matters fell within the jurisdiction of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
The minister spoke on Thursday during his monthly media chat in Port Harcourt, where he described the union’s opposition to the reallocation of portions of the university’s land to private developers and government agencies as unjustified.
He questioned ASUU’s legal standing to challenge the FCTA’s decisions on land allocation, arguing that the union was neither the owner nor the statutory authority responsible for managing land in the territory.
“What is the business of ASUU on our land? How is ASUU the owner of land? Is ASUU the owner of the union in Nigeria now? Is it the union’s right?” Wike asked.
He maintained that the administration’s actions were consistent with government policy and urban planning regulations.
Wike added that the FCTA was prepared to defend its constitutional and statutory responsibilities if the union decided to seek judicial intervention.
The minister also criticised ASUU’s leadership for threatening industrial action, urging the union to follow established public service procedures rather than resorting to what he described as blackmail.
He insisted that the administration would continue its efforts to recover unused land, adding that federal institutions could not arbitrarily occupy thousands of hectares without proper documentation, approvals and evidence of utilisation.
The minister’s remarks followed a warning by the university’s ASUU chapter on Tuesday that it would embark on industrial action if he failed to reverse his alleged decision to encroach on the institution’s land.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, the chapter’s chairman, Sylvanus Ugoh, said the union would pursue legal measures to prevent the alleged transfer of university land to private individuals and companies.
Ugoh said the union would resist any attempt to convert land acquired for public purposes to private use, describing such action as contrary to the public interest.
