FCT minister, please remember those in resettlement areas

Pegi is one of the resettlement areas in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The Pegi Estate, which is one of the creations of the former FCT Minister, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, has 1000-Unit Estate, which was built to mark Abuja at 30. The Estate, if provided with the needed facilities, can compete with Gwarinpa Estate because […]

Pegi is one of the resettlement areas in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The Pegi Estate, which is one of the creations of the former FCT Minister, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, has 1000-Unit Estate, which was built to mark Abuja at 30. The Estate, if provided with the needed facilities, can compete with Gwarinpa Estate because it is divided into A, B, C, D, and E if not more than that.

Though close to the city centre, lack of seriousness on the part of those handling the road that will open up the area to a centre of attraction has made life uncomfortable for the inhabitants. 

The inhabitants of Pegi, which harbours those whose buildings were demolished in Karimo in 2006, have continued to appeal to the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCDA) to give road construction in the area the needed attention.

Tentatively, the residents of Pegi have been forced to pass through untarred road which was constructed through community effort. But the inhabitants of the area usually face the greatest challenge on this untarred road during the rainy season due to lack of drainage.

Not quite long ago, the presence of the FCT Minister, Alhaji Muhammad Musa Bello, for the commissioning of building projects in the Navy Quarters in Pegi, gave the people respite as they thought that he would use his office to quickly consider the sufferings of the people who were relocated to the area. 

The FCT Minister commissioned 100 new accommodation blocks at the Nigerian Navy Barracks at Pegi in Kuje, a suburb of Abuja.

The Chief of Naval Staff, Ibot-Ette Ekwe Ibas, who spoke at the commissioning, appealed to the FCT administration to assist in providing access road to the barracks to reduce the travel hours of the personnel residing there.

So, the fact that the naval chief mentioned the issue of this road and the point that the minister also experienced the hardship of people when he passed through the road gave them this feeling of relief. 

But months after his unexpected visit, the optimism shared by the people has started to diminish because of the fact that nothing can be seen on ground to indicate that the FCTA will soon consider the plight of the Pegi people.

Already, people living in Pegi have continued to nurse a feeling of neglect since they have continued to provide basic necessities of life like water and power for themselves.

Therefore, any plan by the FCT minister to urgently consider the need to construct this road will not only endear these people to the FCTA but also show that the pledge to develop the suburb is not a mere rhetoric.

Sumbo Lawal wrote from Abuja, and can be reached on [email protected]