inister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has disclosed that most of the infrastructure projects completed by the FCT Administration under President Bola Tinubu were inherited from previous administrations after being abandoned for between 15 and 16 years.
Speaking during his monthly media briefing in Abuja, Wike said the decision to revive the abandoned projects was in line with President Tinubu’s directive that viable government projects should be completed rather than left to deteriorate.
According to the minister, the administration adopted a strategy of completing long-abandoned projects while also initiating new infrastructure projects across the Federal Capital Territory.
He stated that roughly 70 per cent of the projects delivered by the FCT Administration were inherited contracts that had remained unfinished for several years.
Wike said abandoning projects already funded with public resources would have denied residents the benefits of essential infrastructure and wasted government investments.
The minister also claimed that some civil servants within the FCT Administration are unhappy with him because his administration has blocked channels previously used to divert public funds.
He maintained that enforcing financial discipline and eliminating wasteful spending have become key priorities of the current administration, despite resistance from some quarters.
According to Wike, the simultaneous completion of inherited projects and execution of new ones has helped improve road networks, ease traffic congestion and open up more districts for residential and commercial development within the capital.
He credited the progress in infrastructure delivery to the support of President Tinubu, particularly the decision to remove the FCT Administration from the Treasury Single Account (TSA), which he said improved access to funding.
The minister also criticised the approval of costly foreign conferences and study tours, arguing that many of such trips provide little value while placing unnecessary pressure on public finances.
He said requests to attend overseas programmes on subjects such as land administration are no longer approved under his leadership, noting that similar knowledge can be acquired through visits to states within Nigeria with established land management systems.
Wike added that his administration has restructured the FCT budget by increasing capital expenditure and reducing recurrent spending.
He explained that before he assumed office, about 65 per cent of the FCT budget was allocated to recurrent expenditure, leaving limited funds for development projects. According to him, the spending pattern has now been reversed, with approximately 70 per cent of the budget dedicated to capital projects and 30 per cent to recurrent expenditure.
