Residents of KYC Estate in Guzape District, Abuja, have appealed to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, to intervene in an ongoing dispute over rock blasting which they say has damaged their homes and created a risk of flooding.
The residents also accused a developer of planning to fill a drainage channel behind their property, which they warned could expose surrounding homes to flooding.
The residents, represented at a press briefing in Abuja by Adango Jumbo and Prince Joseph Kpokpogri, said a property at Plot 1785, Cadastral Zone A09, Guzape District, had been repeatedly affected by blasting activities carried out around the estate.
According to them, the blasting had continued “despite a formal legal notice served over a month ago and despite visible, acknowledged damage to the property.”
They said the activity had caused “significant structural damage, including a collapsed and destroyed POP ceiling, shattered glass panels, cracked walls, and compromised windows and doors throughout the building.”
The residents also complained of “persistent noise pollution and dust, disrupting the peaceful enjoyment of the property and, by extension, the health and wellbeing of its occupants.”
They said their lawyers at Ajunwa & Co. wrote to the Chairman of KYC Estate on August 12, 2026, demanding “an immediate cessation of the blasting activity within two days of receipt.”
The letter, which the residents said violated the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) Act, 1997, was accompanied by photographs showing the alleged damage.
One of the residents, Kpokpogri, demanded N100m in compensation for the damage and “the physical and psychological distress caused to the occupants of the property.”
The residents said the estate chairman subsequently sent personnel to the property to undertake repairs, including fixing the damaged ceiling.
They described the repairs as “a clear and implicit acknowledgment of the damage the blasting activity has caused, damage that is not in dispute, but veritable and plain to see.”
However, they said the blasting had continued despite the intervention, arguing that its continuation “raises serious concerns about accountability and the willingness of those responsible to engage constructively in resolving this matter.”
The residents also drew the FCT Administration’s attention to the planned filling of a drainage channel behind their property by Deansgate Trio Services Nigeria Limited.
They said the company holds an Offer of Statutory Right of Occupancy over Plot 1803, Cadastral Zone A09, Guzape, dated October 29, 2024.
According to the residents, the development conflicts with Wike’s “well-documented and repeated position against estate developers who encroach upon, cover, or build over canals, drainage channels, and designated green areas” in the FCT.
They recalled that Wike had previously ordered the demolition of an estate in Guzape over alleged construction on a green area.
“The filling of the canal behind our property, if allowed to continue unchecked, not only threatens to obstruct the natural passage of stormwater and increase the risk of flooding in the area, but also exposes the property and its surroundings to the very kind of regulatory action, including demolition, that the FCT Administration has consistently carried out against similar infractions elsewhere in the territory,” the residents said in a statement.
The residents called on Deansgate Trio Services Nigeria Limited and the relevant regulatory authorities to investigate the drainage issue.
They also said they would “not relent in seeking full redress for the damage caused and in ensuring that this activity is brought to a permanent end,” while reserving the right to pursue further legal action to protect the property and its occupants.
Reacting during a tour of the premises by journalists, the developer, Michael Auta Ayuba, rejected the residents’ claims.
Ayuba said he moved into the area before the complainants and that the blasting started in 2019, before Kpokpogri and other residents established their properties there.
He said he had advised the newer residents to suspend construction until he completed the blasting, but they continued with their projects.
Ayuba maintained that he had obtained the necessary approvals and that the exercise was “controlled blasting” carried out under the supervision of relevant agencies, including security personnel.
On alleged plans to fill up the waterway, he said he had a valid allocation from the FCT Administration, arguing that the channel for the stream had been “well mapped out”.
In early September, the FCTA identified inadequate drainage systems, undersized bridges and obstruction of natural waterways as major causes of flash flooding in parts of the Federal Capital Territory.
The findings followed a joint assessment of flood-prone locations by the FCTA and relevant emergency management and technical agencies after recent flooding along the Lugbe Airport Road axis, opposite Glory Dome.
