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• Abuja Centenary Economic City Project revived after 10-year delay
From Idu Jude, Abuja
Eleven years down the line, the Abuja Centenary Economic City (ACEC), has bounced back in full to achieve its expected economic development value chain hampered by unstable policy from previous administration.
Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) indicates work has reached 35 per cent, an improvement on the N750 billion primary infrastructure phase of the project.
Stephen Abraham Ajiya, a resident said: “Looking at the prototype of the project shows that sooner than later a new economic city would emerge. And with this improvement, the FCTA is left with no choice but to take the initiative and pursue economic prospects.
“Obviously, the FCT is a landlocked area and does not have economic prospects from natural resources such as Lagos, Rivers, Cross Rivers, and Bayelsa or Delta those with oil and gas resources. To break even, the FCT must put up its thinking cap to create a revenue bond for internally generated revenue (IGR).”
Ezekiel Ahamba, real estate developer, said: “I am optimistic that the project will soon be completed for use. The good thing here is that it comes with different features, such as a new city layout with several features including hotels, hospitals, stadiums, and areas for tourists to enjoy. It also has world-class trade malls and police stations for security checks.”
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Mathias Mugoro alleged that the vision about developing the Centenary City was almost misplaced due to politicisation of the project: “I felt disappointed earlier because that was the vision of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan’s administration was being treated with levity by several administrations.
“Such shows that we are not just working for the common good of Nigeria.”
“We cannot continue like this. Each government shouldn’t stop the good ideas of others just because they belong to different political parties or religion.”
Ojo Sullivan encapsulated: “Truth be told, though people have different sides to one nature. Wike may have other negative sides, but the same person has proven to have what others do not have as a man who can give back to Nigerians the needed infrastructural development. What this means is that if we have the likes of Wike in all the states, Nigeria will be free of potholes along all the federal and state roads.
“It means that money won’t get lost or disappear again. It means that favoritism and ethnicity will disappear. And do not forget that many were appointed Minister of FCT in the past with nothing to show for it. So, let’s start asking ourselves what makes Wike different from others. Had he been there, this project would have started yielding economic results.”
Dr Elizabeth Udensi- Johnson, stated that politics, ethnicity, and poor visionary leaders had an impact on the decade-long delay: “I learnt some time ago that many foreign countries brought money to invest in the project. But they left due to Nigeria’s way of doing things. In Nigeria, people consider ethnicity first before national interest. Sometimes we place our religion first before the economy.
