The Managing Director of the Federal Housing Authority, Mr Oyetunde Ojo, has announced that the FHA has begun rehabilitating roads in Festac Town, Lagos, starting with 1st Avenue.
This is as he noted that structures with integrity issues in the town will also be demolished, reports The PUNCH.
He stated this yesterday, Thursday, August 22, while inspecting the progress of work in the Festac area.
A statement issued today by the FHA indicated that the rehabilitation will occur in phases, aiming to address the town’s infrastructural decay.
Ojo stated that “restoring the glory of Festac Town has gone beyond mere rhetoric” and will be accompanied by visible actions.”
He noted that Festac Town is more than just an estate but a national monument, adding that the FHA is committed to restoring its lost glory.
He urged residents to cooperate with the FHA by paying their statutory fees, as the Authority needs these funds to operate independently of government appropriations.
Ojo explained that the ongoing verification exercise is meant to update the Authority’s database, with only verified properties being recognised after the exercise.
Regarding the ongoing rehabilitation, Ojo detailed that the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gates will be upgraded, illegal structures cleared, solar street lights installed, and palliative road repairs carried out.
He also warned that buildings showing “visible signs of integrity failure” on 6th Avenue will be demolished, adding that owners can retain their land if they demolish the structures themselves, but risk losing the title if the FHA undertakes the demolition.
On the ongoing rehabilitation work, Ojo said that “the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gates will be addressed, starting with the demolition of the old 1st gate and the erection of a new modern structure, clearing all illegal structures on that axis, installing solar street lights on the stretch of 1st Avenue from the 1st gate to the junction of 11th Road, clearing the median and keeping it clean, and conducting palliative repairs on the inward and outward roads of the 1st gate.”
The MD also mentioned “the repairs of the 3.2km stretch of 2nd Avenue, which will cost about 7 billion Naira,” and added that the FHA will seek to influence this through the Federal Government, though palliative jobs will be done to keep it in use.
The FHA CEO warned that he will be visiting 6th Avenue to carry out demolition exercises on properties marked by the Authority, noting that “some of the marked buildings are showing visible signs of integrity failure and are on the verge of collapsing.”
He stated that if the owners decide to demolish the buildings themselves, “they will retain their land titles, but if the FHA carries out the demolition, the owners will lose the land title.”
