\Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike has promised residents of the FCT that the present administration led by President Bola Tinubu will not promise Nigerians what they cannot fulfil.
Wike, who made this known yesterday during the flag-off of the construction of Kwaita Yebu Road in the Kwali area council of Abuja, said nothing can be more disappointing and painful than when a government makes a promise to the people, and the people are not happy that the government cannot fulfil that promise.
He acknowledged that most rural residents of the council have lost hope regarding the road because they never believed that there was any government that would come back to the road because of their previous disappointment.
“That is why Mr. President said he wants to bring back the lost hope, and by the grace of God, that hope is back. The traditional ruler, when he was speaking, consistently asked if this road was completed. I do not know why he used the word ‘if’, because the road will be completed.
“We are not in that group or category of people who would award contracts and then will not execute them. We are not. Let me tell you why the companies ran away, the truth of the matter is that there was no funding.
“Part of the problems we are having in our system is that you will see in the budget, and if the cost of the contract is like N2bn for example, what will be provided in the budget is N100 million.
“I can tell you in the last national budget of 2023, the cost of this project is N7 billion, and what was provided in the budget is N100m, and I said, look, it means that we do not want to do the project,” he said.
Wike further said that they were told to do the procurement, but he said that they could not do that kind of procurement because it was a criminal offence, and that would make the people hate the government.
“Nothing can be disappointing, and nothing can be painful when a government makes a promise to the people, and the people are not happy that the government cannot fulfil that promise.
“So, for us, it would be a promise made and fulfilled. So, we insisted that in this 2024 budget, we provided more than 50 percent of the project’s cost.
“I do not know why the contractor was told 18 months to complete the project. Is it because of payment? 18 months is too long.
“I have seen the importance of this road to the people, and we must not disappoint them. I want to tell you, do not lose hope; again, by the special grace of God, we will be here to commission this project,” he said.
The minister said that all the roads in the six area councils they flagged off will be commissioned before December this year.
“That is what Mr. President owes you and that is why we said we must do everything to allow the rural area to feel the impact of the government. When the rural people do not feel the impact of government, they will not believe that government exist.
“The existence of government is when the people feel the positive impact of that government. If the government cannot do anything for you, you will not believe in that government, and there will be a disconnect between the rural people and the government.
“So, when we are doing the city, we must also do the rural area, afterall, the people are in the rural areas, and the votes are coming from the rural areas,” he said.
