By Festus Fifen

The Nigeria Federal Capital Territory Administration FCTA on Thursday inaugurated a debt recovery committee aimed at recovering the over N25 Billion debt owed by property owners in Abuja and also to improve revenue generation accruing into the coffers of the Administration.

The FCT Permanent Secretary, Mr. Adesola Olusade who inaugurated the Coordinating Committee on the Recovery of Outstanding Ground Rents of N29, 506,643,943.98 owed the Administration by property owners in the capital city said, since the inception of this Administration, improvement in revenue generation has been an issue of utmost importance.

In a statement signed by the Director Information and communication Sule Hazat, The Permanent Secretary reiterated that funding is key in the running of government, provision of infrastructure as well as delivery of quality services to the residents of the Territory.

Mr. Olusade explained that funding of FCTA activities is being hampered due to paucity of funds, which is necessary for the running of a modern capital city such as Abuja.

His words: “The decision to embark on recovery of Ground Rents has therefore, become a matter of necessity. We are serious about this. All those owing should come forward to settle their debts”.

The Permanent Secretary recalled that the FCT Administration has earlier migrated all revenue collections to Treasury Single Account (TSA) via REMITA Platform, to boost revenue generation in compliance with the Federal Government directive.

According to him, “despite all these efforts, the rate of revenue generation has not met the realities on ground, hence the need to exploit other frontiers”.

The 9-Member Coordinating Committee is headed by the FCT General Counsel / Secretary of Legal Services Secretariat, Muhammed B. Umar.