By the mid 1970s, Lagos had become too important for its own stability. It served simultaneously as Nigeria’s political headquarters, commercial nerve centre, and diplomatic gateway, all within a dense coastal city governed as part of a single state. Federal ministries competed with private commerce for land and infrastructure, while congestion and security pressures grew steadily. Beyond these practical strains lay a deeper political concern, the symbolism of hosting the nation’s capital within one region increasingly sharpened questions of access, balance, and federal fairness.
When the military government led by Murtala Ramat Muhammed came to power in July 1975, with Olusegun Obasanjo as Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters, the capital issue was treated as a matter of national design. The administration approached it not as an urban planning inconvenience but as a structural problem tied to how the federation itself was organised.
Why Lagos Was Becoming a Federal Constraint
Lagos had grown organically around trade, ports, and colonial administration. By the 1970s, its layout and land availability no longer matched the expanding needs of a post war, oil rich federation. Federal buildings required secure zones, room for future expansion, and coordinated planning that was difficult to achieve in a city shaped by decades of private development.
There was also the political weight of geography. A capital located on the coast, deep within one state, reinforced perceptions that proximity to power was unevenly distributed. These concerns fed into the belief that Nigeria needed a capital designed specifically for federal purposes, not adapted from an already crowded metropolis.
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The Aguda Panel and the Case for a New Capital
To formalise the discussion, the government set up a panel under Justice Akinola Aguda. The committee was asked to consider whether Lagos should remain the federal capital and, if not, to recommend an alternative and explain why. Public reporting places the submission of the committee’s report in late 1975.
The committee’s conclusions supported the creation of a new capital in a territory administered directly by the federation. Its reasoning emphasised accessibility, central location, security, and long term planning capacity. The idea was not simply to move offices, but to create a capital that could function as a national space rather than a state governed city hosting federal institutions.
4 February 1976, The Legal Creation of the Federal Capital Territory
On 4 February 1976, the Federal Military Government acted decisively by promulgating Decree No. 6 of 1976. This decree established the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, as a distinct federal territory.
The decree defined the boundaries of the territory in an attached schedule and placed its administration under the authority of the Federal Government of Nigeria. It also vested ownership of all land within the territory in the Government of the Federation. This legal structure removed the territory from the control of surrounding states and ensured that planning, development, and governance would be directed centrally.
These provisions were fundamental to the Abuja project. By consolidating land ownership and administrative authority at the federal level, the government created the legal conditions necessary to plan and build a new capital city without competing jurisdictional claims.
The FCDA and the Task of Building a Capital
The same 1976 decree established the Federal Capital Development Authority, FCDA, as the institution responsible for turning policy into physical reality. The FCDA was mandated to select the precise site of the capital city within the territory, prepare and implement a master plan, provide municipal services, and develop essential infrastructure.
This marked the transition from political decision to administrative execution. The FCDA oversaw surveys, planning layouts, road construction, water systems, housing districts, and the coordination of federal development activities. Its role reflected the military government’s preference for centralised planning and execution through a specialised federal authority.
Assassination and Continuity of the Abuja Project
The Abuja project faced an early test less than two weeks after its legal creation. On 13 February 1976, Murtala Ramat Muhammed was assassinated during an attempted coup. Power passed to Obasanjo, who inherited the responsibility of leading the state and sustaining its major initiatives.
The continuation of the Abuja project under Obasanjo was significant. Despite the sudden and violent transition, the legal framework remained intact and planning continued. This continuity ensured that the creation of the Federal Capital Territory became a sustained national policy rather than a short lived initiative tied to a single leader.
Land, Communities, and Federal Control
The land designated as the Federal Capital Territory was not empty. Indigenous communities lived within the area long before the decree of 1976. The vesting of land ownership in the Federal Government simplified planning and development, but it also introduced long term challenges related to resettlement, compensation, and political representation.
As Abuja expanded, debates emerged over indigene status, the rights of original inhabitants, and the responsibilities of the federal authority toward communities absorbed into a centrally governed territory. These issues have remained part of the Abuja story, shaped by the unique legal status of the Federal Capital Territory.
From Legal Creation to Capital Relocation
Although the Federal Capital Territory was established in 1976, the full relocation of Nigeria’s capital functions took many years. Building a capital required housing for civil servants, transport networks, utilities, security infrastructure, and an urban economy capable of sustaining daily life. Economic conditions, political changes, and administrative challenges influenced the pace of development through the late 1970s and 1980s.
The formal replacement of Lagos by Abuja as Nigeria’s capital is generally marked as 12 December 1991, during the military government of Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida. By that point, the Abuja project had evolved from a legal decree into a functioning seat of government.
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Abuja and Nigeria’s Political Landscape
Abuja’s creation represented a deliberate effort to reposition Nigeria’s political centre. It reinforced federal authority through direct territorial control, reduced the concentration of power within a single state, and introduced a planned national capital designed for long term governance.
The association of Abuja with both Muhammed and Obasanjo reflects this history of initiation and continuity. Muhammed’s administration enacted the decisive legal instruments, while Obasanjo’s ensured that the project survived a critical transition and moved into implementation. Subsequent governments carried the burden of completing the relocation and managing the consequences of a federally controlled capital.
Author’s Note
Abuja’s story is a reminder that capitals are not born by chance. They are created through law, authority, and long term commitment. While the Federal Capital Territory was designed to serve the entire federation, its history also reveals how decisions made at the centre reshape lives, communities, and expectations. Abuja stands today as both a symbol of national ambition and a continuing conversation about fairness, access, and what it means to share a national home.
References
Federal Capital Territory Act, Decree No. 6 of 1976, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria.
Daily Trust, The Akinola Aguda FCT Report and the indigene’s statelessness, 28 October 2013.
The Guardian Nigeria, Abuja, Cry, the beloved capital @ 31, 11 December 2022.
