News Editor
By Olu Balogun
Depositors for the National Housing Programme, NHP, have appealed to President Bola Tinubu to help them secure delivery of their houses by the Federal Housing Authority, FHA, to reduce their burden of rent payments in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
The affected federal government workers, under the aegis of Association of National Housing Programme Depositors, ANHPD, who claimed to have completed their deposits through the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, FMBN, lamented that they have been waiting endlessly for the handing over of their houses without positive response.
In a save our souls, SOS statement, titled: “Non Delivery of Housing Units at Luxiar Estate, Life Camp by FHA Mortgage Bank” and made available to journalists on Monday in Abuja, they particularly urged President Tinubu to beam his administrative searchlight on the authorities concerned in order to salvage them from the unbearable housing problems in the FCT.
The depositors, in the statement signed by their spokesperson, Abubakr Mohammed, said “about 100 subscribers have completed payment for their units ever since, but have not been given their allocations to ease their accommodation problems.”
“We are left at the mercy of the Abuja landlords to pay the cutthroat rents. Some of us borrowed this money to deposit believing that as a federal government agency, we were going to be treated fairly without knowing that our hopes will be hanging on the balance for this long.
“It is unbelievable to know that some of us finished payment between late last year and up till now, no reliable reasons have been offered to us for the delay.
“Our findings revealed that work at the site has stopped since February 2024. Mortgage Bank keeps promising us (subscribers) and blaming the contractor for not delivering the houses. Does It mean that the contractors are bigger than the bank?, they asked.
According to the statement, some subscribers had to withdraw their savings from cooperative societies to subscribe, believing it was a wise decision, now regretting as the houses may take years to be delivered.
“Many subscribers who had initially believed that because the bank is a federal government institution that can be trusted to deliver, now holds the opinion and believe that it’s far from being the truth.
“We at this juncture wish to use this medium to called on our listening president, Ahmed Bola Tinubu to urgently wade into the predicaments of many of the federal government workers who have mortgage their life savings to own a house for their families.
“Your (Tinubu’s) name will be written in the sands of time if you can urgently come to our aid,” the depositors appealed.
