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The Federal Capital Territory Administration has set a target of completing at least 10 major infrastructure projects in Abuja ahead of the 2027 general elections, with Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, assuring that the projects would be ready for commissioning before the polls.
Wike gave the assurance on Wednesday during an inspection of the ongoing Tungan Madaki-Zuba Road and Nile University-RR3 Road projects, where he expressed satisfaction with the pace of construction and the capacity of the contractors handling the projects.
The minister said the inspection was aimed at assessing the progress of projects launched during the third anniversary of the FCT Administration and determining whether contractors were on course to meet their delivery commitments.
At the Tungan Madaki-Zuba Road project, Wike disclosed that five of the six box culverts had already been completed, while the contractor, China Geo-Engineering Corporation (CGC), had committed to delivering the project by December.
He expressed confidence in the contractor, stressing that its track record, equipment and capacity gave the administration sufficient reason to expect timely completion.
“They have the capacity. I mean, they are not a new company. They have the capacity, they have the equipment. What’s important is if you have the equipment, and they have the equipment as part of capacity. So, they’ve been tested before now, so I have so much confidence in them,” Wike said.
The minister also revealed that some of the contractors were executing the capital-intensive projects without receiving up to 30 per cent mobilisation, describing their commitment as commendable.
He, however, assured the contractors that the FCT Administration would honour its financial obligations to prevent funding from delaying the projects.
“On our part, we will not take it for granted that they are committed to the realization of the project. We will do our own part to pay them their money,” he said.
Wike said the administration would continue to inspect the projects to ensure that the commitments made by contractors translated into completed infrastructure.
“We are also visiting some other two projects tomorrow, believing that by the end of the year, we would have had up to 10 projects, as promised, lined up for commissioning before the general election,” he said.
Beyond road construction, the minister used the inspection to signal a tougher phase of enforcement against structures and activities considered harmful to Abuja’s master plan and environmental infrastructure.
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He said the FCT Administration would sustain the demolition of structures obstructing waterways, following the commencement of an exercise in Maitama aimed at clearing blocked drainage channels and reducing the risk of flooding.
“We’ve just started somewhere. After that, we will move to another area. We are not going to end just with what we started yesterday,” Wike said.
The minister also disclosed that the Director of Development Control was being queried over approvals allegedly granted to car dealers to operate on designated green areas.
Wike said he had ordered the immediate removal of car dealerships from such spaces and constituted a task force to enforce the directive.
“This morning, the Director of Development Control is being queried now for giving approval to car dealers to use green areas for the sale of cars,” he said.
“I’ve already stopped it, and I’ve set up a task force to make sure that every car dealer is moved out of the green areas. If you want to sell your car, you go and purchase somewhere, or rent somewhere, and then develop it.”
He said the decision was final, regardless of the businesses or individuals affected, insisting that Abuja’s green areas were intended for environmental and recreational purposes and should not be converted to commercial spaces.
Wike also rejected criticism of the demolition of structures blocking waterways, challenging those questioning the exercise to explain how buildings erected on drainage channels could have been approved in the first place.
“What is due process? What is due process? You went to block a water channel, is that due process?” he asked.
According to him, the enforcement drive was part of the administration’s responsibility to protect public infrastructure, preserve the Abuja master plan and safeguard communities from the consequences of indiscriminate development.
The minister vowed that the exercise would continue beyond Maitama, with the administration determined to remove structures obstructing drainage channels and other public infrastructure across the Federal Capital Territory.
