Why rent is rising in FCT — Wike

Mr Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has attributed the rising cost of housing accommodation in FCT to market forces.

Wike stated this in Abuja on Saturday when he visited Zeberced Limited Quarry, Kubwa-Abuja on Saturday, to see what the company was doing.

While responding to questions from journalists on what the FCT Administration was doing to address high rent for accommodation in Abuja, the minister noted that everything has increased in cost.

According to him, no government legislates on rents for houses, but market forces.

Wike said, “You are aware that everything has actually increased. The man who built the houses didn’t build that he will not make profit at the end of the day.

“I don’t agree with people always complaining about rent increases. There are increases in everything today. So, rent should not be singled out.

“You want us to make a law and say that a 2-bedroom flat should not be more than N50,000 or N100,000 for example. I don’t think that will encourage investors.

“We are not running a socialist or communist system; we are running a capitalist economy, and these are determined by market forces.”

The minister however added that the government could come in with some regulations, saying, “but cannot totally take over the housing processes.”