The Kaduna State government has explained the reason for the demolition of Asher Kings and Queens Restaurant – the building said to be the venue of an aborted sex party in the state.
It revealed that apart from violating COVID-19 protocols, the building located in Sabon Tasha area of Chikun Local Government had no valid title or development permit.
The Director-General of the Kaduna State Urban Development and Planning Authority (KASUPDA), Ismail Umar-Dikko, made the explanation on Tuesday at a press conference in the state. He stated that the decision to demolish the property on December 31, 2020, was in line with the laws and regulations of the state on any property that was in violation of its provisions. Umar-Dikko added that the illegal status of the building became a very separate matter from the trigger event, the third-party elements who had planned and advertised an unlawful gathering purportedly at the restaurant.
He stated that by virtue of various land administration and development control initiatives conceived and implemented in the last five years, there was no excuse for anyone in Kaduna State to remain without a valid title to their property and permits for any development thereon.
The KASUPDA boss insisted that those who have chosen to remain in violation and have shunned opportunities to regularise their status cannot argue from sentiment when enforcement actions were taken. But the owner of the demolished building, Mrs Aisha Yakubu, had denied plans to hold a sex party at the restaurant and threatened to seek legal action over the action of the government.