From Fred Itua, Abuja
Officials of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) on Monday removed the popular Apo tipper garage in Abuja
The FCTA officials in collaboration with security forces and relevant agencies, removed shanties, illegal shops, mechanic shops, food sellers, building materials shops, and impounded some abandoned trucks and vehicles.
Senior Special Assistant on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement to FCT Minister, Attah Ikharo, who led the FCT Taskforce Team while speaking to newsmen, said it is a major interchange and four-lane highway connecting to Kubwa, hence the clearing of the tipper garage.
According to SSA, “The FCT Minister Malam Muhammad Bello at the weekend took a very developmental tour, around Guzape district to check developmental work in Guzape and to ensure the work gets to advance stage within his tenure when the Minister was going round, he came across this very bad site at Apo tipper garage by Apo NEPA.
“He, therefore, instructed that the tipper garage should be removed first thing on Monday morning and that is why we are removing them.”
While explaining why the tipper garage must go, he said: “This is a fundamental road from the outer expressway, then to Wasa and the other one is connecting to Guzape II here.
“But having this tipper garage disturbing the construction work going on smoothly here, the Minister frowned at that heavily and asked us to remove it finally and seal up the gate and ensure every illegality is removed here.”
Reacting to their argument that they have been in the area for over a decade, he said:
“The argument that they have been here for years won’t stand because this is an interchange road on a super four-lane highway and connecting all the way to Kubwa. No matter how long they have stayed, they must leave because the interchange must come.
“Then when you look at the aesthetics of the city, you cannot have tipper garages everywhere in this highbrow Apo area of Gudu, it cannot stand.”