ABSTRACT
During one of my visits to Abuja in the spring of 2008, while researching the developments, what struck me was how the neighborhoods in certain parts of the FCC had developed and acquired their unique urban characteristics. At first, I did not know what to make of the fences that enclosed the residences in the residential districts, and properties in the commercial and the emerging Central Business District (CBD). The boundaries that reinforced and separated the sidewalks, street curbs, the carefully spaced trees beside the curb, property lines, public, semi-public, and private spaces did not seem to be enough for the owners of the estates. Instead, ministerial, commercial, banking, and residential structures were secluded from view by high concrete walls with huge ornate metal gates, and webs of sharp ribbon razor and barbed wires lined the tops of the fences. Sensor lights and surveillance gadgets were numerous on the fencing installations. Whether one looked at a plot through the gate, or from an alley separating it from the adjacent one, the fences were visible, dramatic, and adorned with objects that warned the passer-by to keep off.
