The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) says the ongoing demolition of shanties and illegal structures in the territory is being done with adherence to rules of engagement.

The FCT administration had mandated the demolition to rid the territory of shanties and illegal structures on road corridors.

According to the chairman, FCTA Ministerial Task Force on City Sanitation, Ikharo Attah, despite the illegalities observed, the FCT minister had insisted on engagement with critical stakeholders before the demolition exercise

Mr Attah stated this in Abuja on Sunday.

“All that we have been doing as regards the clean-up, removal of shanties and illegal structures in the FCT as an administration, is with a total human face.

“We carried out all the cleanup, or demolition as you call it, with strong empathy because we understand that we are also part of humanity.

“When people commit illegality and when the time for clean up comes, the FCT minister will ask us to engage and discuss with the people.

“The minister would say that the few ones we know we can make arrangements with, we should do so. The ones we know nothing can be done, we are to tell them expressly, talk to the local chiefs and natives to make them understand that it is necessary,” he said.

He said that the task force gave more than four months’ cleanup notice to Mpape community, dialogued and engaged them for some time before the commencement of the exercise.

“So, I believe what we exhibited is with a strong and total human face. It is just that when we do all of this the engagement is not being reported in the media.

“The dialogues and meetings were not in the media space, so people will not know what we are doing. But I will tell you clearly that all the clean-up we have carried out was done with a human face.

He also said that the delay in the clean-up was due to the series of negotiations and meetings with critical stakeholders.