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Town Planners Urge Urgent Action To Save Abuja’s Green Areas 

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By Jumoke Olaitan/ Angela Atabo

‎Nigerian Institute of Town Planners (NITP), Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Chapter has called for urgent action to halt the loss of green spaces in the FCT and enforce strict adherence to the Abuja Master Plan.

NITP Chairman in the FCT, Ms Queen Phillips, raised the alarm in Abuja on Wednesday, during the 2026 Town Planners Day, with the theme, “From Garden City to Concrete Jungle: Planning Livable Communities”.

Philips explained that the theme responds to growing public outrage over non-adherence to planning standards and the steady disappearance of green areas.

She noted that the event offered a platform for stakeholders to examine challenges confronting sustainable development in the FCT and craft practical solutions to preserve its environmental assets.

”The theme is therefore both timely and compelling, providing an opportunity for stakeholders to reflect on the challenges confronting the sustainable development of the FCT.”

“It will also help to collectively examine practical solutions for preserving its environmental assets and ensuring the creation of livable communities.

”The FCT Chapter of the institute has, at various times, demonstrated its commitment to addressing these concerns,” she said.

Phillips said that the chapter routinely sets up committees to investigate planning challenges triggered by intense development pressure.

She added that reports from the committees were forwarded to the national body for action, while observed infractions are reported to the Town Planners Registration Council of Nigeria (TOPREC).

She stressed that professional standards, ethical practice, and regulatory compliance remain non-negotiable for orderly development.

‎Ms Zaliha’u Ahmed, who chaired the event, reminded participants that the Abuja Master Plan was originally designed around a “garden city” concept, where nature and infrastructure coexist through sound land use and high quality of life.

However, she expressed deep concern over the conversion of public and institutional lands into private developments.

Ahmed cited specific violations, including the widespread felling of mature trees, the redesign of lands surrounding Jabi Lake Park, the conversion of a district hospital site for residential use, and illegal commercial activities taking over walkways and buffer zones.

She warned that these departures threaten the city’s identity and core plan, urging professional bodies to publish evidence-based positions on major violations, protect whistleblowers who refuse improper directives, and sanction members who facilitate illegal approvals.

Delivering the keynote address, Prof. Laraba Rikko of the University of Jos described Abuja’s shift toward a “concrete jungle” as an experiential crisis in urban planning.

Rikko acknowledged public skepticism regarding whether town planners even exist in the city, attributing this perception to a lack of visible planning impacts and urged professionals to demonstrate greater integrity and diligence.

”The theme reflects the tension between visionary planning and uncontrolled urban expansion, institutional intentions and implementation realities, as well as sustainable development and political, economic and demographic pressures,” she said.

Rikko reiterated that Abuja was explicitly conceived as a planned capital to prevent the chaotic growth seen in organic cities, with green belts, parks, and natural landscapes.

This, she said, serves as vital ecological infrastructure to absorb rainfall, regulate temperature, and mitigate climate risks.

Lamenting that these features were continually fragmented, degraded, or reallocated, Rikko pointed to unapproved building plans, weak enforcement, political interference, corruption, and a breakdown of professional ethics as core drivers of the decay.

She challenged built-environment professionals to take full accountability, emphasising that every official signature and approval either protects or undermines the capital city. (NAN)

Edited by Philip Yatai ‎

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EuroMatch NPFL: Kano Pillars, Sporting Lagos Share Points in Kano

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Kano Pillars and Sporting Lagos played out a 1-1 draw in an entertaining EuroMatch Nigeria Premier Football League Matchday 7 encounter in Kano, with both sides settling for a point after a closely contested battle.

Sports247 reports that the result means the Mai Su Gida have now followed up their previous goalless draw against Enyimba with another stalemate, while Sporting Lagos also recorded their second consecutive draw after being held to a barren 0-0 draw by Ikorodu City in the Lagos Derby.

Kano Pillars started the encounter with the intention of making home advantage count, but Sporting Lagos remained organised and disciplined as both teams searched for an opening.

The breakthrough finally arrived deep into first-half stoppage time when Valentine Ugwu put Sporting Lagos ahead in the 45+2nd minute, giving the visitors a valuable lead heading into the interval.

Kano Pillars responded strongly after the restart and quickly found a way back into the contest.

The hosts were rewarded in the 48th minute when Abdullahi Musa drew Kano Pillars level, finishing off a move created by veteran midfielder Rabiu Ali, whose assist once again underlined his influence in the Pillars midfield.

With the score level at 1-1, both sides pushed for a decisive second goal, but neither could find the breakthrough during the remainder of the encounter.

Kano Pillars will take encouragement from their ability to recover from going behind, while Sporting Lagos will also be satisfied with securing a point away from home after surrendering their lead.

For the Mai Su Gida, the draw represents another opportunity gained but also another two points dropped from a winning position, as they continue their campaign in search of consistency.

Sporting Lagos, meanwhile, remain unbeaten across their recent fixtures but will be looking to convert their promising performances into maximum points as the season progresses.

The 1-1 result leaves both teams with plenty to build on, particularly in attack, as they prepare for their next assignments in the EuroMatch NPFL.

With the league campaign continuing to gather momentum, Kano Pillars and Sporting Lagos will now turn their attention to their upcoming fixtures, hoping to turn future draws into victories.

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Federal judge calls Flock ‘indiscriminate mass surveillance’

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A federal judge ruled this week that a Tulsa, Oklahoma sheriff’s deputy violated a woman’s Fourth Amendment rights when using Flock Safety to search for her license plate without a warrant. 

As reported by 404 Media, this ruling does not create a binding precedent, but it is one of the first times that a federal judge has ruled that a Flock search is unconstitutional.

In this case, Judge Sara Hill said the deputy should have obtained a warrant before searching the Flock database for the woman’s license plate, as he had “no apparent reason” for the search “other than the fact that [the woman’s vehicle] had a California license plate.”

The deputy then used the woman’s travel history in Flock as part of the justification for searching her car, where he allegedly discovered 91 pounds of meth. But Judge Hill wrote that all evidence obtained after the Flock search “must be suppressed as the fruit of a poisonous tree.”

Judge Hill also took broader aim at warrantless searches of the Flock database, writing that tracking people’s location — even when they’re in public places — becomes “constitutionally problematic when law enforcement can indiscriminately and passively catalog your whereabouts over an extended period of time and then use that information for any purpose whenever convenient.”

“This is a type of indiscriminate mass surveillance,” Hill wrote. “It is not targeted on a single individual, as in [Carpenter v. United States, a Supreme Court case focused on how government agencies access location data from cell phones]. It is a tool that collects information about all vehicles that pass by any network-connected camera at all times, and it serves up the information to law enforcement on demand.”

Hill joins a growing chorus of Flock critics from across the political spectrum. Numerous local and state governments, including Florida and Texas, have said they will stop using the technology. And on Friday, Senator Bernie Sanders — a Democrat from Vermont — introduced the Block Flock Act, which would bar federal agencies from using automated license plate readers such as Flock.

Flock CEO Garretty Langley — who we’ll be interviewing on-stage at TechCrunch Disrupt — has called for a “compromise” between privacy and safety and offered an apology to women who have been stalked by law enforcement officers using the Flock system. And with all those cancellations, Flock has also reportedly offered voluntary employee buyouts as a way to shrink its workforce.

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