By joshua FCTA Refutes AEDC Allegation Over C2 Maitama Substation Invasion, Threatens Legal Action
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has refuted the allegation by the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) that its officials unlawfully encroached on the firm’s C2 Maitama Substation, describing the claim as defamatory and malicious.
The FCTA also threatened to institute legal action against the power distribution company.
This is contained in a report published by Vanguard newspaper on July 21, 2026, and written by Omeiza Ajayi.
Vanguard reports that the Acting Director of FCTA Department of Development Control, Bashir Madaki Sanusi, in a statement, said the AEDC’s public announcement of July 10, 2026, falsely accused an Assistant Director of the Department, of leading the invasion of the substation.
The FCTA Department of Development Control clarified that its actions on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, were strictly statutory and professional, maintaining that they were carried out transparently after a formal complaint was filed by the lawful holder of an FCT Minister-signed Certificate of Occupancy (C of O).
According to the Department, the landowner reported being denied access to his property due to obstructions allegedly erected by AEDC officials.
The statement, according to Vanguard’s report, disclosed that a team of Maitama District officers and surveyors went to the site to verify the boundaries, but found no permanent structure or fence – only a barbed wire enclosure allegedly erected illegally. Surveyors with standard equipment were later sent to set precise boundary beacons and determine if any encroachment on the AEDC substation had occurred.
According to the Department, while the exercise was going on, AEDC Chief Operating Officer (COO), Engr. Blessing Ogwe and Assistant Director Mrs. Christine Emma-Kalu came to the scene accompanied by police officers. It said AEDC leadership invited the Department’s team to a resolution meeting at their office, but the AEDC management failed to appear, despite FCTA officials waiting from 2pm to 5pm.
Addressing the issue of power disruption, the Department firmly denied tampering with or damaging any electrical infrastructure, asserting that power was fully operational when its team left. It accused AEDC of staging the outage to create crises and gain public support.
Denouncing AEDC’s public statement as a cheap attempt to smear its staff, the Department reinforced its determination to uphold proper land-use standards in the FCT. It noted that any valid land disputes should be directed to the FCT Minister—the sole statutory authority over land allocations – instead of resorting to “cyber-bullying and corporate thuggery.”
The Department called on AEDC to retract the online publications and published an unreserved apology in major national newspapers.
“Failure to do so will leave the Department and the affected staff with no option but to seek full legal redress for defamation of character,” the statement concluded.
SOURCE: VANGUARD, July 21, 2026