allAfrica.com: Nigeria: FCT - Creating a Village for Cars (Page 1 of 2)

Across the satellite towns of Abuja are Car Dealers displaying their wares. But where are they supposed to display these expensive but important wares, after their exit from the Abuja City Center? Is the government still serious about providing them with the Automotive Village?

A frequent passerby along the Kubwa Express Road in Abuja, will take it for an automotive market ,as whatever car you want is displayed on the ever busy road. From limousines to V-boot, the jeeps to the Honda Accords, to mention a few. The heavy traffic on this road makes the car dealers rejoice as it is free advertisement to the numerous Abuja residents that ply this road daily, as they feed their eyes on these cars every day. One confessed to Daily Trust of his desire to own one of these flashy cars. "When I pass by these cars, it motivates me to work hard and buy my own car. There was this long car I saw in one of the Motor stands recently, I could not resist the temptation to look at it, until the bus I was in passed",Muhammed Sani said enthusiastically.

The last administration in the FCT led by malam Nasir el-rufai sent all the car dealers packing out of the city center to the designated Automotive Village, as part of its drive to restore Abuja to its Master Plan. The Kubwa expressway was not that supposed Automotive Village, but Tungan- Maje, a suburb in Gwagwalada Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory. Tungan-maje is about 50 minutes drive from the city center, and about 35 kilometers from Wuse.It is 3 kilometers from Zuba, a major junction for those coming into the capital city from the Northern axis- and from the East via Lokoja.

One indigene of Tungan-Maje, the place that was first earmarked as street, the Abuja Automotive Village, Malam Alidu narrated to Daily Trust about their hopes when they learnt the place was to become Abuja's Automotive Village. "When President Obasanjo came to commission this place as the Automotive Village, we were all happy and excited that something great has come to us at last. Prior to the president's visit, a small road was constructed to the proposed site of the Automotive Village, and a residential building that was standing there, was taken over by the government. All of these made everyone happy, that economic activities will be in top gear in this place soon. But all that hope was dashed as weeks turned to months, months to years, and the land has been lying fallow just the way it was when President Obasanjo came there. On the signboard leading to the place, it was written plots are now on sale. Whether the Motor Dealers are to buy the plots and develop it themselves, or the government was to develop the place, is what I don't know. Even the machines that were used for the road construction have been stuck there, some are totally dead, and to my mind the whole project was a mirage that never came true, and we the villagers are disappointed that a project which the president of the country came to commission, can flop. The hope of our people to have an economic activity booming here has been dashed."

When Daily Trust visited the site where the Automotive Village was supposed to be, we were welcomed by grasses and a refuse dump, and it was obvious that nothing was happening there, because grasses have grown in the land and the machines were grounded ,and some looking rusted beyond repairs. .Just then, this reporter saw a youngman walking towards her direction.

Mr. Isa Abubakar, as he introduced himself, said he is the security man working with the Construction Company which constructed the road leading to the site. Probably, he was hired to watch over the dead machines as he was sitting close to one of the machines, from where he sited this reporter. While chatting with him he said "I'm watching over the place until the company comes and packs these machines from here. So why will they move the equipment from here, are they not supposed to work here? Daily Trust enquired. Mr. Abubakar said the company he works for, was contracted to construct the road ,but not to develop the Automotive Village. So, "we have done our part, and we will move out of the place soon."

When Daily Trust sought to know about other companies that ought to work there, he said "I have not seen any company working here since the president came here. I only see some Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) officials, who come here from time to time. But I heard they want to give the contract to another person, and I have told them that whoever they give the contract to, I will be willing to work with them too." Abubukar is already trying to secure a future for himself, but that future may never be, now that Tungan-Maje is no longer the supposed automotive Village, as stated by the present FCT Minister.

It is not only Abubakar's dreams that are being shattered, but that of the entire people of Tungan-Maje. Responding to this development, one of the residents ,Malam Bala Jibrin ,said it is unfortunate that the Automotive Village project has been taken to Dei Dei where there is the building materials market already. I hope the government will bring something tangible to us after all," he said hopefully.

But why the inhabitants of Tungan-maje seem to be unhappy about this development, the Abuja Motor Dealers Association is delighted at the change of plan. While speaking to the Chairman, Motor Dealers Association, FCT branch, and Managing Director HA&H Motors, Bar.Hamza Abdullahi, he said the decision by the past administration to send them away from the city center was a hasty decision. In his words "no work was done in the automotive village in Tugan Maje, before they asked us to leave the city center. Even at the time President Obasanjo went there, they just constructed a small road leading to the site ,but there was no structure on ground. All we saw was a beautiful plan on paper, with nothing on ground to show for it. That is why I said our movement from town was impromptu, with no structure on ground to move us to. So, some of us ended up on the Kubwa Expressway, and some are along the Nyanya Road, and even some have left the town to Kaduna and Lafia respectively."

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