Trending 
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has described shanties across Abuja as hideouts for criminals and a major contributor to insecurity in the city.
Speaking at a media parley with journalists on Monday, September 1, 2025, Wike said shanties are illegal settlements that obstruct development and compromise safety. “When you say shanties, are shanties legal? Shanties are people who are illegally occupying a place. You see, we cannot joke with security. You have complained about this security, kidnapping, One chance, and this,” he stated.
The minister argued that such structures distort city planning while serving as cover for criminal activity. “These are people who occupy all these shanties. First of all, they take away the corridors where the road is supposed to pass. And then when you want to do roads you are told to compensate. Compensate whom? Who is this person here?”
Wike insisted that security concerns override arguments for tolerance of illegal shanties. “You don’t see a land, you just go and begin to put batchers. Criminals don’t stay in houses where you will identify them. Criminals stay in this area, somewhere you cannot locate them,” he said.
Rejecting claims that poverty justifies their existence, he maintained: “We cannot say because of poverty, we shall allow you to kill people, to rob people, to kidnap people. That is not allowed.”
He further stressed the environmental and social impact, concluding that: “It defaces the city.”
