As Wike resumes, he should bear in mind that he is in Kapital Street Area 11 in the nation's capital and not in Brick House, Rivers State. The swaggers which hugged applauds in Port Harcourt may not yield the same response in Abuja.
...the FCT ministerial portfolio had been in the hands of appointees from a section of the country for so long, to the extent that it was almost becoming the normative culture that only persons from that part of the country could be appointed to the position. It took President Tinubu's will power to break that unhealthy jinx by appointing Wike as the FCT Minister. By that singular action, he has exterminated the assumption that the FCT Ministerial seat is the birthright of a particular section of the country...
There are reasons why President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's appointment of Mr Ezenwo Nyesom Wike as the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is significant and can be considered as a vital point scored by the new administration.
First, by his appointment, Wike, who is the immediate past governor of Rivers State, has become the second person from Southern Nigeria to be appointed to administer the FCT since its creation 47 years ago in 1976. His appointment, therefore, invokes the notion of inclusion that rekindles faith in the nation's capital as a home for all Nigerians.
Secondly, judging by Wike's antecedents, particularly from his scorecard as the governor of Rivers State, he can be described as a project-oriented leader, and probably the kind of administrator that Abuja needs at a time like this. In January, he claimed to have built or was building 12 flyovers in the state, beginning from 2015.
And thirdly, Wike radiates the impression of a no-nonsense and strong-willed leader. He may be of the genre of ministers required to rein in the flaws and gaps in the FCT bureaucracy, while also curtailing the reign of impunity by some residents and private sector operators who are adroit at circumventing guidelines and rules in the FCT. He would need to grow the requisite third eye to identify some committed civil servants who will offer genuine advice and guide, for him to push through his key programmes. I will now proceed to adduce reasons for my standpoint, starting from the first, which is faith in the renewal of Abuja.
Renewed Faith in Abuja as a Genuine Symbol of National Unity
In a certain way, Wike's appointment automatically transmitted positive signals for the FCT and the socio-political health of the country at large. Abuja being a successor to Lagos as Nigeria's capital was envisioned to serve as an authentic symbol of Nigeria's aspiration for unity and greatness. That is why whatever happens there has a way of rippling down the country.
One of the factors that make the FCT different from the states is the fact that it is the only territory in Nigeria that is equilaterally owned by all Nigerians, irrespective of their geographical or social backgrounds. This is by virtue of a clear and unambiguous constitutional provision vesting the ownership of the entire 8,000 square kilometre of the FCT in the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Chapter 8, Part 1, Section 297 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria provides that "(1) There shall be a Federal Capital Territory, Abuja the boundaries of which are as defined in Part II of the First Schedule of this Constitution.
"(2) The ownership of all lands comprised in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja shall vest in the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria." There are other parts of the Constitution that reinforce the place of Abuja as the soul and heart of Nigeria which unites it without bias or prejudice.
This definition makes the FCT unique by virtue of the ownership of all the land therein by all Nigerians (through the government of the federation). What these provisions imply is that no section or group can monopolise any position in the administration of the FCT, to the exclusion of any other part or section of Nigeria.
The FCT scenario differs from what obtains in each of the 36 states of Nigeria, where particular ethnic, religious or cultural groups lay claim to ownership, control or dominance of the state, to the disadvantage or exclusion of other Nigerians. This explains why it was considered a contravention of the vision and well intended purpose of the FCT for the territory's ministers to have been inadvertently or deliberately appointed successively from only one section of the country for nearly half a century.
From Ajose Adeogun to Nyesom Wike
When Mr Mobolaji Ajose Adeogun from Isale-Eko, Lagos State (who died two months ago), who served as the Administrative Secretary of the newly created Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) between 1976 and 1979, was handing over to his successor, he certainly had no premonition whatsoever that there would be no other minister of the FCT from his own section of the country for the remaining 44 years of his life.
After Adeogun, 15 persons were appointed substantive ministers of FCT under civilian and military administrations between 1979 and 2023. Mr John Jatau Kadiya, from Plateau State, who served between 1979 and 1982; Mr Iro Abubakar Dan Musa from Katsina State (1982-1983); and Mr Haliru Dantoro, who later became the Emir of Borgu in Niger State (serving from October 1983 to December, 1983) were appointed ministers of the FCT by President Shehu Shagari in the Second Republic.
During the military regimes of Muhammadu Buhari, a Major-General; Ibrahim Babangida, a General; Sani Abacha, a General; and Abdulsalam Abubakar, a Lt-General, the following persons were appointed as FCT minister: Mamman Jiya Vatsa, a Major-General and poet from Niger State (1984-1985); and Hamza Abdullahi, a Major-General from Jigawa State (1986-1989). Also, Muhammad Gado Nasko, a Major-General from Sokoto State (1989-1993); Jeremiah Timbut Useni, a Lt General from Plateau State (1993-1998); and Mamman Tsofo Kontagora, a retired Major-General from Niger State (1998-1999).
Under the current democratic dispensation, those appointed as FCT minister by President Olusegun Obasanjo have included Mr Ibrahim Bunu, an architect from Borno State (1999-2001); Mr. Muhammed Abba Gana, an electrical engineer also from Borno State (2001-2003); and Mr. Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai, a quantity surveyor from Kaduna State (2003-2007).
Obasanjo's successor, President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua appointed Dr Aliyu Umar Modibbo, a university lecturer from Gombe State (2007-2008) and Mr Muhammad Adamu Aliero, a former governor of Kebbi State (2008-2010), while Mr Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, a former senator and the incumbent governor of Bauchi State (2010-2015) was appointed by President Goodluck Jonathan.
The longest serving of them all and the immediate past FCT minister, Mr Muhammad Musa Bello, an ex-banker from Adamawa State (2015-2023) was appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The foregoing shows that the FCT ministerial portfolio had been in the hands of appointees from a section of the country for so long, to the extent that it was almost becoming the normative culture that only persons from that part of the country could be appointed to the position. It took President Tinubu's will power to break that unhealthy jinx by appointing Wike as the FCT Minister. By that singular action, he has exterminated the assumption that the FCT Ministerial seat is the birthright of a particular section of the country, and has thereby renewed the collective faith of Nigerians in Abuja. Tinubu has also restored the Abuja dream to the original path intended by its founding fathers and the constitution of Nigeria.
It is worthy of note that many ministers of the FCT since 1979 have contributed greatly to the development of the territory. Their individual abilities might not be in doubt. Many of them substantially kept faith with the vision and mission of Abuja by implementing several developmental and administrative programmes that have made the FCT what it is today. However, upholding the spirit behind the creation of the FCT as a centre of unity makes it imperative to always cast the net wider across the entire country when head hunting for competent persons for appointment as the FCT minister. That way, the unsavoury situation of one section seemingly monopolising the position for over four unbroken decades will not be witnessed again.
Wike's Projects Savviness and Ruggedness
The second reason why Wike will expectedly be a square peg in a square hole as the FCT minister is his track record as a pragmatic projects initiator and executor. The FCT, perhaps, has one of the largest numbers of uncompleted, abandoned and un-awarded road projects that are begging for attention in the country. Added to the list are the many aging roads that require maintenance, expansion or outright reconstruction. This is where the shrewdness of projects-savvy Wike will come handy. He did it in Rivers State, notwithstanding the difficult deltaic terrain, and he can do far better in the FCT, which has a more project-friendly terrain.
Critical infrastructure, majorly inter- and intra-district connecting roads, need urgent attention. The Abuja light rail project, which has been has ongoing for over a decade appears to have gotten stuck on the way and would need Wike's quick steely intervention to be completed and come alive.
The opening of more districts by servicing them with critical infrastructure, like underground sewerage for liquid and solid wastes, an electricity power grid, access roads, pipe-borne water and other facilities, is one sure measure of reducing the population pressure on the city centre. Again, a carefully worked out private-public partnership, which leverages Abuja's high land value, will work in this aspect and others, such as the development of the Abuja Town Centre and the Central Business District (CBD) corridor.
Wike's Stern Stuff, Law and Order in the Nation's Capital
The FCT is not just the heart but also the face of Nigeria. Abuja doubles as the capity of Nigeria and the headquarters of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). It is a choice destination for many Nigerians and West Africans. And it is debatably so for many other Africans and black people elsewhere. Years ago, Abuja was widely recognised as one of the fastest growing cities in the world.
Expectedly, Wike's forceful disposition and firmness will come in handy in the enforcement of compliance with the Abuja Master Plan, to curb illegalities and impunity, particularly in land administration and development. Abuja should not be allowed to derail from a mega city to a mega slum. As minister, not a few Nigerians have confidence in Wike to arrest the drift and restore FCT to the path of orderly and steady development.
Immediately after his swearing in, it is hoped that Wike will hit the ground running to prove to all that his appointment was not a fluke. He should build a strong partnership with credible private sector operators, especially construction and real estate developers, if he must make meaningful impact. The private operators will help his administration to maintain standards, provide qualitative roads, bridges, housing and other critical infrastructure for residents across Abuja's social strata.
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Wike as the President's Eye in the Capital
The president of the country is the constitutionally recognised administrator of the FCT. However, he administers the territory through a proxy, which is the minister of the FCT. With Abuja as the seat of the presidency, Wike, like his predecessors, will be the president's host and eye in the capital. He will coordinate and incentivise the various security agencies in the territory and report to his boss almost on a daily basis. Wike, with his vibrancy and activism, appears primed to fit that bill.
For President Tinubu, the most daunting teething days of his ascension appears to be ebbing as he is steadily overawing the early headwinds, with his administration journeying towards a cruising level. The deployment of Wike to the strategic FCT ministry may pass as a masterstroke by the president, which further attests to his prowess as a successful head-hunter.
Why Wike Should Be Tactfully Pragmatic
As Wike resumes, he should bear in mind that he is in Kapital Street Area 11 in the nation's capital and not in Brick House, Rivers State. The swaggers which hugged applauds in Port Harcourt may not yield the same response in Abuja which hosts the Presidency, National Assembly, the Diplomatic Community, ECOWAS leadership and the apex judicial authorities.
With the eyes of the entire country and the international community riveted on it, the FCT is a far more complex entity to administer than the oil bearing Rivers State. Apart from being the cynosure of all eyes, Abuja's complexities span its multi-pronged administrative prongs - the FCTA, FCDA, STDA, Area Councils - all of which are quasi-autonomous and yet beholden to the FCT minister as the chief driver.
Wike should also bear in mind that unlike the states, the FCT does not have a State House of Assembly and he must devise a working relationship with the sometimes overreaching National Assembly. Not to side step, the tact needed in dealing with the autochthonous population of FCT that have their own set of complaints and challenges. In all, Wike is expected to muster the will to push through his own style and reforms in the FCT, the same way the likes of Mr Nasir E-Rufai left their peculiar imprints on the sands of the territory's evolution.
Nosike Ogbuenyi writes for Premium Times.
