The question that comes to mind is: How is Mr Wike achieving all these at a time when there is economic downturn in the country, characterised by double-digit inflation and massive devaluation of the naira? Not just that. Some analysts have wondered how Mr Wike is able to remain focused on his FCT obligations despite fighting battles on diverse fronts… He has been likened by some to gold which glitters while under fire. He waxes and performs when under a heated atmosphere of controversy and vitriol.
It was Richard Milhous Nixon, the 37th president of the United States (1969-1974), who made the famous statement that, “If an individual wants to be a leader and isn’t controversial, that means he never stood for anything.” Despite his entanglement in multiple webs of controversy, if the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT ), Ezenwo Nyesom Wike and his fellow ministers were athletes on the field of contest, the former Rivers State governor would have been singled out for a test for enhancement medication due to his abnormal energy and speed, especially in project implementation. He is achieving despite the unfavourable economic situation in the country and the avalanche of distractions stacked in his way. He has proved many skeptics wrong with his output since his assumption of office as the FCT Minister on Monday 21 August, 2023.
A Square Peg
There were 45 of them on the starting block in August, but Mr Wike is prized athlete, emerging as ‘the star boy’ of the current administration. The poser is: How is the minister managing to deliver on public goods and services, despite the inclement economic situation that is prevailing throughout the country and his involvement in many overlapping ‘fights’ and controversies from multiple fronts in Rivers State, the FCT, and the larger country itself?
The number of projects he has revived, initiated or completed in nine months seems unmatched, within a corresponding time frame from 1999 till date. And he is still roaring, without caring about which of his predecessors started this or that project. Once he deduces that a project is desirable or in public interest, he plunges into it with an admirable drive.
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An observer who claimed to know him better said he is not one to fold his arms and blame his tools or predecessors for the challenges at hand. He simply does not believe in passing the buck. He plunges into all tasks and challenges headlong.
In the little time of his arrival at Kapital Street, Area 11, Garki, Mr Wike has remarkably raised the bar of project execution and virtually succeeded in reducing many of yesterday’s giants to the level of ordinary folks.
On the day that Mr Wike was sworn in, PREMIUM TIMES published a piece titled, “The significance of Wike’s appointment as FCT Minister.” In the article, I deduced reasons why he would very likely fit the bill as a square peg in a square hole, a leader who would unlock the potentials of the 48-year federal capital. I argued that the former governor’s self-evident track record in Rivers State as a pragmatic projects executor and initiator would give him a head-start in Abuja.
The shrewdness of the former governor further makes him a good choice for the FCT portfolio.
At the time of his assumption of office, the FCT had several uncompleted, abandoned, un-awarded road and general infrastructure projects that were begging for attention. Added to the list was a litany of ageing roads and facilities that were overdue for maintenance, expansion or outright reconstruction.
A Staccato of Projects
Barely nine months in the saddle, Mr Wike is lining up several projects for commissioning, in commemoration of the first anniversary of the Bola Tinubu administration. Among the projects is the Abuja Rail Mass Transit Scheme, also known as the Abuja metro line. The Abuja rail project had been ongoing for nearly two decades, without a conclusion in sight.
Other projects slated for takeoff next month are the multi-billion naira official residence of the vice president, the strategic Wuye flyover (interchange) across Nnamdi Azikiwe Ring Road ,connecting Wuye District to the city centre through Olusegun Obasanjo Way, and many other resurfaced, rehabilitated and completed projects.
The inner southern expressway (ISEX), a critical six-lane intra-city highway that bifurcates the Abuja city centre has since been resuscitated, partly completed and opened to motorists from the AYA end, up to the CBN headquarters axis. This beautiful road will ultimately connect the outer northern expressway (ONEX) and the outer southern expressway (OSEX).
The resurfacing of ageing roads in many parts of the city, such as Asokoro, Maitama, Wuse 1, Wuse 2, Garki 1, Garki 2, Maitama, Jabi and Utako districts, is now a common feature, proceeding on a scale that has not been witnessed in decades.
The ‘wikeholic’ (workaholic) minister is working round the clock to keep his promise that by May, a lot of Nigerians will see great changes, as far as the FCT is concerned. He has vowed that no ongoing project in the FCT would be abandoned, and that projects which are considered as priority have been included in the FCT’s 2024 statutory budget for adequate funding.
Plans for Satellite Towns, Area Councils
Mr Wike’s attention is not just focused on the city centre. He is not leaving out the satellite towns and the FCT’s six area councils in his plans. As a matter of fact, he has started the development of those rural parts of the FCT, after many years of neglect.
Examples of his projects underway in the area councils include the FCT Highway 105, the 11-kilometre six-lane dual carriageway linking the Airport Expressway to Kuje. This project has been hailed by many Abuja residents, especially those within the Kuje axis for its potential to open up a vast area. The 3.2-kilometre access road to Kwali town and the 11-kilometre Yangoji – Sukuku – Ebo roads, also in Kwali area council, are further instances.
Mr Wike has frequently declared that development cannot be concentrated only in the city centre and assured that the FCT Administration would also take development to the rural areas. According to him, developing the area councils will not only spread the impact of good governance and discourage rural-urban migration but also improve security in the entire FCT.
Mr Wike has also embarked on other programmes, including those that are service-related, which cannot be outlined here due to the constraints of length.
Taming the ‘Indigenes’
Mr Wike is not ignoring the original inhabitants of the FCT, popularly known as ‘Abuja indigenes,’ who may have their genuine existential fears and sometimes overbearing sense of entitlement. President Tinubu watered the ground for the FCT minister by appointing one of the ‘indigenes’, Zaphaniah Jisalo, as a minister. The original inhabitants are one group that the minister has been handling with tact, sometimes applying the carrot and stick. They have many reasons to be worried about their future in a rapidly urbanising and sophisticated capital territory environment.
Beyond elitist clamours for appointment slots and pecks by some ‘indigenes’, the minister knows what the compelling needs of the ‘indigenes’ are and that was probably why he recently announced a whopping N280 million worth of scholarships at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels for FCT students from poor backgrounds. Most children of the original inhabitants fall under the indigent category.
In addition, Mr Wike recently flagged off the rehabilitation of about 40 dilapidated public schools spread across the six area councils of the FCT. For the average Abuja ‘indigene’ who may not be able to afford the exorbitant fees charged by private schools, the public schools are of immense importance to them. Through programmes and policies like the scholarship scheme and the school rehabilitation programme, the minister succeeded in taking the wind out of the sail of many indigenous activists.
In a rare act of brinkmanship, Mr Wike pulled a significant stunt towards endearing him to many ‘indigenes’ by drawing one of their most successful political leaders, Philip Tanimu Aduda, close to his administration. Mr Aduda served three consecutive terms between 2011 and 2023 as the Senator representing Abuja. The Karu-born politician had earlier represented the AMAC/Bwari Federal Constituency for two terms between 2003 and 2011 in the House of Representatives. The minister didn’t mind sacrificing the incumbent senator representing Abuja, Mrs Ireti Kingibe, for Mr Aduda, who he described as his friend, but who was actually of more immediate relevance to him in the period that he is steadying his grip on the FCT terrain.
Wike’s Outspokenness
As a political actor, Mr Wike can be said to belong to the hyperactive and restless tribe. Added to that, he is audaciously outspoken. He is not the kind of person that would wait for the undesirable to happen before dispatching a note of warning to forestall it. This attribute manifested itself on 20 February during the flag-off of the five-kilometre Naharati – River Ukya – Unguwan Hausawa road in the Abaji Area Council.
At the event, he sounded a stern warning to any director or other officials who might be plotting to sabotage or slow down his programmes through the delay of official files. “We had a meeting on Monday with the most senior directors and I was telling them that woe unto that director who will keep a file that I have approved, for weeks. Woe unto you because you are a saboteur. Once I approve, do the needful. You can take a week to do due diligence. You don’t need to take 20 days,” he warned.
Mr Wike spoke to underline his intolerance of needless delays: “The contractors are humans. When the money does not get to them on time, they incur more costs and then they begin to seek variation, even though they know that variation is not in my dictionary. So, I need the support of the bureaucracy so that we can deliver the dividends of democracy to the people.”
The minister is equally in no mood to tolerate mediocrity or any other obstacle on his way either. On 4 April, he terminated the contract of Messrs Integrated Facility Management Services Ltd, which was earlier in charge on maintaining the International Conference Centre, Abuja, with immediate effect. He swiftly contracted Messrs Julius Berger Nig Plc to carry out immediate and comprehensive renovation of the strategic centre. He also announced an indefinite closure of the Centre to pave way for the renovation works. It was a move that was applauded by many Abuja residents against the backdrop of the long neglect of the edifice, resulting in serious decay of several facilities in it. It was also a stern wake-up call for other facility managers and a reminder that the axe dangles close by.
His Success Mojo
The question that comes to mind is: How is Mr Wike achieving all these at a time when there is economic downturn in the country, characterised by double-digit inflation and massive devaluation of the naira? Not just that. Some analysts have wondered how Mr Wike is able to remain focused on his FCT obligations despite fighting battles on diverse fronts.
He has been likened by some to gold which glitters while under fire. He waxes and performs when under a heated atmosphere of controversy and vitriol. The delicate thorny contour he navigated to the FCT portfolio was intriguing and fraught with landmines.
A strong will power, bluntness and courage are major characteristics that set Mr Wike apart from others. These traits have their pros and cons. He easily picks fights and brushes on the way due to his blunt and sometimes combative nature. Nonetheless, he is a very practical political player who is almost impossible to cage. His domineering nature, self-confidence and assertiveness are noteworthy. He knows how and when to push and get what he wants.
His Scorecard As His Testimony
Less than one year down the lane, it is already difficult to dispute the fact that the appointment of Mr Wike as the FCT Minister is a masterstroke. For instance, a recent post on X (formerly Twitter) by a popular human rights activist and former senator representing Kaduna Central district, Shehu Sani on Monday 8 April typified the optimistic feeling of a growing number of FCT residents and many Nigerians towards the minister.
Mr Sani wrote that “The FCT is undergoing visible and verifiable infrastructural changes and improvements in the Area Councils and the metropolis.The Minister is delivering on this mandate commendably.”
The post attracted over 268,000 views, 4,800 likes, 753 retweets and 277 comments as at 6 p.m. on Wednesday 10 April. Most of the comments were positive about Mr Wike’s performance. Few were either cautious or non-committal, while a tiny proportion was critical.
Mr Sani, a vocal opposition member has been forthright in his criticism of some of the policies and programmes of government at all levels. Such a compliment of the minister coming from the activist opposition member at this time sounds quite convincing and believable. It might as well be reflective of the growing opinion of FCT residents about their new minister.
Security Challenge
As the minister, Mr Wike has his challenges, which he is confronting frontally and in some cases praying the National Assembly to weigh in. One of his major constraints verges on the security of lives and property in the FCT, especially against the upsurge in kidnapping incidents a few months ago. It is one critical sector which he has begun to address and needs to do more on.
He is already seeking the National Assembly’s nod for him to start receiving monthly security votes like state governors do. He oversees an 8,000-square kilometre territory, which is not only larger in geographical size and population than some states but also harbours the seat of the Federal Government as the capital of Nigeria. For this reason, he wants access to security votes for quick and effective response to security challenges.
Security votes, though controversial, is a first line monthly imprest that is allocated to each of the 36 state governors in the country for the singular purpose of funding security services within their respective domains. The votes are not subject to legislative oversight or audit, while its expenditure is solely based on the discretion of the governor. If the states can have security votes, why can’t FCT, the seat of power and the face of the country that has continued to grow in sophistication and complexity?
Storms As His Propeller
Mr Wike can be said to be in bed with storms and controversies. His unpretentious style not only courts but hugs them, be they positive or negative. They seem to constitute his stimulants and propellers. And the faint-hearted cannot successfully flock with the minister on his tortuous routes. What is reassuring about the Wike persona is that he stays reasonably focused on his vision and mission, and is rarely distracted by the storms sweeping through his path. And, judging by the way he is dealing with the storms, it is evident that he would rather courageously follow the path strewn with strife in pursuit of his goal, rather than settle for easy peace or compromise.
To leaders like Mr Wike, controversy may be excusable, especially if it demonstrates that they stand for something and maintain focus. Once a leader takes a stand, his position exposes him to controversy arising from tackles by those on the other side. However, Mr Wike’s steely nature and resilience notwithstanding, it would profit him, his career, the FCT, his home state, Rivers, and the nation more, if he adopts an internal regulator to know when to simmer down or up in his many fights and controversies in order to avoid an implosion. That said, by and large, Mr Wike is a pragmatic, unrelenting and highly gifted performer, as far as project and service is concerned. One cannot but congratulate him for his outstanding will power to achieve.
Nosike Ogbuenyi writes for Premium Times.
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