The decision to transfer the National Capital from Lagos to Abuja, among others, were products of various debates centered on the unsuitability of Lagos to continue being the Federal Capital City as a result of many challenges.
One of those challenges was the description ofLagos as the ‘Problem Capital’ due to the physical and environmental problems largely caused by the population increase beyond the existing physical capacity of the city. This was supported in the national development plan, and it noted that the result of an increased population was a serious overcrowding in slum areas and acute shortage of land which has seriously impeded the transformation of Lagos into a modern capital city.
Two international agencies namely the United Nations and Ford Foundation supported this assertion when they reported in 1970 that “In metropolitan Lagos, chaotic traffic conditions became endemic,demand on water system outstripped its maximum capacity, interrupted power supply became chronic as industrial and domestic demands far-exceeded capacity utilization as a result of which factories were compelled to dig their own wells and stand by generators” (Bena 1974).
Beside these, port facilities have been overstretched. These conditions have degenerated both within and outside the city limits in spite of slum clearance schemes, while the city governments threatened to breakdown amidst charges of corruption, mismanagement and financial incompetence.
The fact now, based on the ongoing situation, is that, in the planning and development of Abuja,Nigeria has provided a solution to the problem in its former Federal Capital by planning a new City, devoid of the elements that made the former Capital City unsuitable for the function. But, it went ahead to kill the concept, by reintroducing developments that would return the nation back to the same previous difficulties, due to corruption, greed, selfishness and primordial sentiments.
Based on the land uses in all planned areas, the activities and services to be provided are predicted. These include the number of traffic to be generated by the surrounding activities, water and electricity to be consumed, the amount of solid and liquid waste to be generated.
The vital component of greening in the planning of the City were not only to enhance aesthetics but alsoamong others, serve as a stabilizing element in the prevention of urban congestion. Unfortunately, the greens were are all eaten up within a time span of only two years.
People would not fly to access their properties. All the multiple and large expanse of green areas that were violated in the Central Area and other Districts specifically in Phase I alone would require the creation of service roads to access them and subsequently feed the collectors and arterial roads. We should never expect the traffic, generated waste, water and electricity demands to still be normal. They must be provided so long as people are going to live or various activities would now be taking place on the land. Traffic congestion is surely an impending threat in the waiting.
These have never been issues before the advent of this administration, because, none of the previous administrations ever thought or anticipated in their weirdest imagination that there will be a time that these plans would one day experience the scale of violations now ongoing, not only in the Central Area, but many other Districts in the City.
It is more disturbing when people witness many of the tittle documents of the violated green areas, being openly traded for sale attracting billions of Naira, which would not go to the Government coffers but private pockets. This reminded us of the words of the Late President, Muhammadu Buhari. That “If Nigeria did not kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria”. This is exactly what is happening to Abuja currently.
By providing 250Km sq. for the City almost equivalent to that of Washington DC, and 8,000Km sq. for the FCT, Nigeria has one of the largest Federal Capital Territory in the world, if not the largest. The reason was that, whatever land demand the Federal Government would have, and more, can be adequately contained within the FCT.
There is no any bases for the destruction of the City Center by it’s over congestion. There are much more unutilized lands, more than 20 times the whole City in the other parts of the Territory. The FCT Administration can create plans based on the Abuja standard in other areas to allocate and provide infrastructure, since they have the resources.
To be continued.