The three arms of government in a democracy are the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary. According to the Abuja Master Plan, their institutional buildings are the Presidential Complex, the National Assembly and the Supreme Court, which are located in a circular area known as the Three Arms Zone in the Central Area District of Abuja. If there is any area that should be revered, with maximum protection in the concept of the Abuja Master Plan, it is this zone. No administration in the past debased the physical land use requirements of this circular region, unless perhaps with a recent attempt by the present administration.
Already, not only has a revised plan for the Three Arms Zone been carved within the portion earmarked for the Presidential Complex, but the site for the revised plan has already been cleared ready for the commencement of development, contrary to the Master Plan proposal and development regulations. The revised plan consists of Low Density Residential Area, Commercial Area and Petrol Filling Station. Can we imagine the American Government redesigning the vicinity of the White House, or the British Government that of No. 10 Downing Street? Unfortunately, as sacrilegious as it is, this is what is happening now in Abuja. This is the mother of all physical distortions of the Abuja Master Plan. The Nigerian Institute of Town Planners (NITP), the Town Planners Registration Council of Nigeria (TOPREC) and the Association of Professional Bodies of Nigeria (APBN) must take note.
Admitted, that the main Presidential Complex is still lying unutilized, but its importance prevents all previous administrations from tempering whatsoever with the space earmarked for the entire complex. It is believed that a future administration shall one day put the structure to its proper use. We are aware of an administration that contemplated using the building for another function, but the heavy implications made it dropped that idea.
The Three Arms Zone is the starting point of the Central Area District, followed by the Ministries Zone, Cultural Zone, Central Business District (CBD), stretching through to the National Hospital. The IPA did not deem it fit to propose any density residential use for the whole of the Central Area other than the mixed-development flanking the CBD. So also no FCT Administration in the past had ever contemplated violating the land use proposal for this zone.
The procedure for approval for Land Use change starts with the Town Planners making the design. A Town Planner that would design this so-called revised plan for the Three Arms Zone, whether from the URP Department or the AGIS violated the ethics of his profession and shall be liable to sanctioning for unprofessional conduct according to Section 13 of the TOPREC Decree No. 3 of 1988. It is the president that shall grant the approval for any change of land use in Abuja, more so that it involves a very high profile and security area as the Three Arms Zone.
The FCT Administration is to guide the presidency. If it actually submitted a memo for the approval of the president based on any design for the conversion of a portion of the Three Arms Zone for Residential, Commercial and Petroleum Filling Station use as it appears in this revised plan, it has done a very grave disservice to this nation. But, if it is yet to, because we are yet to hear such information as usual from the FEC meetings, we advise it desists, otherwise it shall be unpatriotic.
If such a zone which should be highly protected as explained in the Kenzo-Tange Central Area Urban Design document could be violated, the wider implication is that there is nowhere in the whole of the city that shall be safe. For the Development Control Department that is saddled with the protection of the City Land Use plan, we wish to stress that under no circumstances should it approve of any development within this zone for any other use. Any attempt to do so is akin to reneging on its statutory mandate.
