- President Bola Tinubu has praised the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, for orchestrating a visible turnaround in Abuja’s infrastructural landscape 50 years after the city’s creation.
- The commendation followed a special thanksgiving dinner celebrating the successful inauguration of 31 distinct infrastructural projects executed across the capital territory within a 28-day window.
- Wike attributed the rapid developmental pace to key structural reforms, notably the establishment of the FCT Civil Service Commission and the strategic exit of the FCT from the Treasury Single Account (TSA) to secure commercial bank funding.
President Bola Tinubu has stated that the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, is undergoing a rapid, positive transformation under the structural leadership of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.
Eko Hot Blog reports that the President shared his assessment during a special thanksgiving dinner held on Friday night in Abuja to commemorate the successful inauguration of 31 major infrastructure projects across the territory within just 28 days.
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Represented at the event by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, the President commended Wike and his administrative team for their sustained sacrifices in making the nation’s capital functional for all citizens.
He remarked that five decades after the formal creation of the FCT, the capital city is finally seeing its vision meet tangible execution.
He added that the minister has successfully demonstrated that leadership is measured by visible, practical results that directly impact the populace rather than loudly announced administrative plans.
Endorsing the current pace of development, the former Minister of the FCT and current Special Adviser to the President on General Duties, Aliyu Modibbo, described Wike’s tenure as stellar.
Modibbo, who represented Vice President Kashim Shettima at the function, expressed strong optimism that Wike would continue his role into a potential second term, noting that a standard four-year tenure is hardly enough to complete the expansive master plans currently underway.
In his address, Wike recounted the steep challenges he inherited upon assuming office in August 2023.
He noted that he met a highly demotivated civil service workforce that lacked the institutional drive to implement government agendas.
To resolve this, Wike and the Minister of State for the FCT, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud, secured presidential approval to establish the FCT Civil Service Commission.
This crucial reform allowed career civil servants to rise to the apex ranks of Permanent Secretary and Head of Civil Service for the first time, massively boosting operational morale.
The minister revealed that with a newly motivated workforce, his administration successfully inaugurated nine major projects in its first year, 19 in the second year, and an impressive 31 projects in the third year.
He further explained that exiting the FCT from the Treasury Single Account (TSA) framework proved highly strategic, as it allowed the administration to smoothly collaborate with commercial financial institutions to fund and sustain critical construction pipelines.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, represented by the House Majority Leader, Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, labeled Wike as the best-performing FCT minister in recent memory.
Additionally, speaking on behalf of the project handlers, the Managing Director of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Dr. Peer Lubasch, lauded the federal government’s deep financial commitment to massive infrastructural expansion.
Lubasch commended Wike’s rigorous planning and consistent capital investments, noting that the sustained efforts are firmly positioning Abuja as one of Africa’s premier purpose-built capital cities.
