The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, is mobilizing Abuja youths and other stakeholders to resist joining the planned nationwide protests from August 1 to 10, which are being organized in response to hunger and hardship.
Speaking at a ministerial engagement with FCT youths from the Abuja South Federal Constituency in Kwali Area Council on Sunday, Wike said, “Youths and other stakeholders in Bwari and Gwagwalada Area Councils will also be engaged on the same issue in the coming days.” This follows a similar interaction with stakeholders in the Abuja Municipal Area Council on Saturday.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the purpose of these interactions is to inform and educate them about the negative impacts of protesting and why they should abstain from participating. Wike expressed gratitude to the traditional rulers and area council chairmen for their efforts in mobilizing the FCT youths for these discussions.
“There is no need for the protest. The current administration is barely one year in office, which is not sufficient time to assess its performance. You can’t judge leadership within one year. I have not been in office for even a year, but I have accomplished much that should be appreciated, showing that the FCT is progressing,” he said.
Wike highlighted significant achievements in education, health, and other sectors, particularly security. He urged residents to commend and support the security agencies, emphasizing that it would be unfair not to recognize their efforts. “It is not fair to say we have not done anything on insecurity when we have improved security in FCT,” he stated.
He stressed the need for peace in the FCT, warning against allowing the city to be destabilized under the guise of protests. “We want peace in FCT and so, we cannot fold our hands and allow it to be destroyed in the guise of protest,” Wike said.
Regarding the proposed Federal Capital Territory University of Science and Technology in Abaji, Wike assured that efforts were underway to establish a top-tier university. “I don’t want to set up a glorified university. I want to build a university that we will all be proud of and can proudly claim as our alma mater. We are currently procuring to build classrooms, lecture theatres, and laboratories for the university,” he explained.
Addressing land issues, Wike lamented that the primary concern for many in Abuja revolves around land acquisition rather than development. “The problem of Abuja is land. Once you’re made a minister, it is as if you are coming to share land. Nobody talks about development. Everybody is land, land, land, land, land. I feel so bad. Each time I am in my office, when 20 people come to see me, 18 will talk about land. Nobody will talk about infrastructure, hospitals, or schools; everything is about needing 20 hectares of land. And I say, ‘if you take all this land, where will the indigenous people stay?’”
Wike urged the youths to cooperate with the current government and stay away from the planned protests organized by individuals with unclear agendas.
