By Johnbosco Agbakwuru
President Bola Tinubu has said his administration will not rest until the dividends of democracy are equitably distributed across the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and its satellite towns and the entire country.
He promised balanced infrastructural and socio-economic development across both the city centre and the suburbs of the nation’s capital, assuring that the FCT must grow as one body, with every district and every community feeling the pulse of national renewal.
Speaking on Thursday in Abuja during the commissioning of the Kuje-Airport Expressway, the President, who was represented by his deputy, Vice President Kashim Shettima, highlighted the significance of the nation’s airport corridor, noting that beyond being just a passage, it is the handshake of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The Nigerian leader maintained that his administration will continue to pursue the kind of “roads, brighter streets, safer corridors, cleaner surroundings, improved drainage, and modern facilities that befit the capital of Africa’s largest democracy.”
He vowed that his administration will continue to extend positive developments and improved municipal services outward to the area councils, ensuring peripheral districts feel the impact of the government.
President Tinubu continued: “We shall not rest until the airport and its neighbouring communities become models of order, hospitality, and opportunity.
“We shall not rest until the dividends of democracy are equitably distributed across the territory, from the ceremonial heart of Abuja to the settlements that sustain its daily life.”
Observing that a nation’s image begins at its gates, the President justified why communities around the airport “must not be treated as forgotten settlements beside national monuments.”
The airport road settlement, he noted, is “home to families, workers, traders, farmers, civil servants, students, and entrepreneurs whose lives must reflect the promise of the capital they inhabit.
“When the road to the airport works, the economy breathes better. When the communities around it are connected, the people feel seen. When the first mile into a nation is dignified, the visitor’s first impression is shaped by order, not by anxiety,” he added.
Commending the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, for making the dream a reality, he described him as a trusted hand for the realisation of his administration’s “pledge to make the FCT habitable and to make available to all parts of the territory what is available to the inner-city residents.
“He has taken this assignment with the urgency it deserves, and he has shown that leadership is best measured by completed work, not by decorated files. I commend him, the FCT Administration, the engineers, consultants, contractors, and all who brought this project to completion,” he added.
The President implored FCT residents around the airport communities to protect the road as a shared inheritance, saying public asset is a covenant between government and citizens.
Earlier, Wike said the completion of the Kuje Expressway has restored hope to residents and opened up the area for greater economic and social development, recalling that when the current FCT Administration assumed office, insecurity and poor infrastructure were major concerns in Kuje and other area councils.
He explained that while extensive consultations were held with traditional rulers, political leaders and other stakeholders across the six area councils to identify their most pressing needs, the Kuje Expressway was one of the key requests made by community leaders, who appealed to the administration to revive the abandoned project and improve access to the area.
The Minister said the road will significantly reduce travel time between Kuje and the Abuja city centre, stimulate economic activities and increase property values in the area.
Also, the Minister of State for FCT, Dr Mariya Mahmud, described the ongoing infrastructure development across the territory as a significant demonstration of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
She commended the President for his unwavering support for the FCT Administration, which has enabled the execution of projects aimed at improving the lives of residents.
For his part, the Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Development Administration, Engr Richard Yunana Dauda, explained that the contract, awarded in 2022, was designed to connect several major roads and provide links to other highways across the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Nasarawa State.
Dauda noted that the project extends beyond road construction, incorporating drainage systems and bridges to enhance connectivity and provide an alternative route to Gwagwalada and other parts of the FCT.
Also present at the event were the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri; Senator Philip Aduda, federal legislators; presidential aides and top officials of the FCT administration, among others.
