Five major tasks before FCT minister in 2018

Residents expect the FCT minister, Muhammad Musa Bello, to accomplish certain tasks in the year 2018. Aso Chronicle has enumerated some of them below.  Abuja Light Rail project  Since the multi-million naira Abuja Light Rail project was awarded in 2007 by Malam Nasir el-Rufai, then the FCT minister, its delivery date  has witnessed several postponements. […]

Residents expect the FCT minister, Muhammad Musa Bello, to accomplish certain tasks in the year 2018. Aso Chronicle has enumerated some of them below. 

Abuja Light Rail project 

Since the multi-million naira Abuja Light Rail project was awarded in 2007 by Malam Nasir el-Rufai, then the FCT minister, its delivery date  has witnessed several postponements. The promise of the FCT minister, Muhammad Musa Bello, to deliver the project in December 2017 also failed. 

He had told Daily Trust in November that “Before Christmas, anybody coming to Abuja will fly into Abuja, enter the airport railway station and terminate at the station in the Central Business District or the metro station. That way, you don’t have to drive for 44 kilometres before you come into the city or go out.”  

The Permanent Secretary of the FCT Administration, Christian Ohaa, had also earlier in October said the project was 98 per cent completed and would be delivered in December. 

“Let me reiterate that the December completion target for Abuja Rail Project remains sacrosanct. From the level of work I have seen on ground, this December completion period is achievable,” he told Business Day.

As the general elections loom, the All Progressives Congress (APC) would not want to miss out on an opportunity to flaunt its achievements, so delivering this project in 2018 is not just an expectation from residents but a key point to be scored on the political scoreboard in the FCT.

The project, when completed, would become a major yardstick with which the present FCT minister could be assessed as it has the potential to engage directly and indirectly, at least 20,000 persons.

Besides, the project would address transportation chaos in the territory, providing cheaper, efficient and safer transportation to hundreds of thousands of residents. It would also serve as a viable source of internally generated revenue to the FCTA, stimulating economic growth and job creation.

Ultimately, the rail mass transit will speedily transform Abuja into a modern city as it would integrate the social, political and economic activities between satellite towns and the city centre, thereby reducing traffic congestion drastically and saving lost man-hours.  

The rail mass transit project, owing to its large nature, was divided into six lots covering the entire territory. Lot 1A and 3 currently executed cover Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Central Area, Idu and Kubwa.

Lot 4 will convey passengers from Kuje to Karshi while commuters going from Kubwa to Bwari would be captured in the fifth lot. 

Lot 6 covers the Airport, Kuje and Gwagwalada to Dobi, in the outskirts of Gwagwalada. 

Of all the lots, lot 2 is the most wanted, covering one of the largest traffic corridors in the territory – Nyanya to the city centre, up to Kubwa.

Independence and Constitution Avenue roads 

Also among the projects that could not be delivered in 2017 as promised by the minster are the Constitution Avenue and Independence roads which are among the major roads in the Central Area due to their connectivity to several important places including the embassies of foreign countries, government agencies and hotels. Both roads also intercept Olusegun Obasanjo Way and Herbert Macaulay Way, two other important roads in the territory. 

The FCT minister said the roads have been left uncompleted for over 30 years. 

“By the grace of God, the Constitution Avenue road will be open to traffic before 31st December of this year. By the time we are done with the major projects in the next one year or so, I think we can really say the heart of Abuja would have been truly and correctly opened to traffic,” he had said. 

Since the deadline has elapsed, should the roads be opened in 2018, motorists would heave a sigh of relief. The roads would also facilitate economic activities. Failure to deliver them in 2018, they would be regarded as another failed project.

Abuja University of Technology

With several failed take-off dates, the dream of Abuja residents having a specialised university is far from being realised. The Abuja University of Technology, Abaji is yet to take off despite being reportedly 90 per cent completed and ready for academic activities. 

While inspecting the project sometime in March 2017, the FCT minister, Muhammad Musa Bello, said the institution would soon take off. Nine months after the statement, nothing seems to have been heard of the institution. 

A statement by the secretary of the university’s Steering Implementation Committee, Rosemary Umana, in 2014 that the school would enroll 1, 965 students by the end of the 2015/2016 session was never realised. 

The statement, including others by political office holders, past FCT ministers and other big wigs on the school’s take off dates were mere illusions. 

Some buildings have already been completed on the expansive land of the school with estimated billions of naira spent. Some observers fear the facilities could be endangered if not put to use. 

Karshi-Apo road

Since construction started on the 13.25km Apo-Karshi road in 2011, it is yet to be completed. Past FCT ministers, despite their efforts, could do little in ensuring that the road was completed.

The project is among the first visited by Muhammad Musa Bello after his appointment. With about two years into his tenure, the project is still not completed. 

Among the debacles to the completion of the project is the investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission into the activities of the contractor handling the project, M/S Kakatar Nigeria Limited. 

The Karshi-Apo road is as a result of the construction of the Karshi-Ara road which links to Nasarawa State from the FCT – the Karshi-Ara end goes into Nasarawa State while the other end which is the Karshi-Apo road comes into the FCT.  

In an interview with Daily Trust, then Director, Satellite Towns Development Department of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Mrs. Victoria Imande, said total contract sum for the two roads – Karshi-Ara and Karshi-Apo was N6,355, 609,124.53 and a total of N3, 140,111,100.92 was paid to the contractors before they commenced work. 

“However, their account was frozen afterwards by the EFCC while conducting an investigation on one of their directors. Their account being frozen slowed down the work,” she said. 

She said the plan of the minister to terminate the contract was not possible because of the money already paid to them. 

There is however light at the end of the tunnel as the contractor resumed later in 2017. 

The executive director (Projects) of Kakatar Nigeria Limited, Mr.  D. Atukpa, who spoke with Daily Trust, said all constraints that led to the stop of work on the Karshi-Apo road had been resolved and that work has fully commenced at the construction site.

Atukpa, in August 2017, said the road would be completed and handed over before 12 months. If his words are anything to go by, before the end of 2018, the road would be ready. 

“We also have some roads projects to be completed in the satellite towns such as the Karshi-Apo road project, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Dobi and as I speak, contractors are on the site doing their work. 

“I personally thought that by now, this road would have been completed but we are working on it seriously and by the grace of God, it will be done.” Bello had said. 

 Maintaining peace

The last may not have been heard about the communal crisis in Bwari. Though the Etsu of Bwari, Ibrahim Yaro and Sarki Bwari, Awwal Musa Muhammad Ijakoro downplayed the involvement of the chieftaincy dispute, observers said the crisis was just a tip of the iceberg and if the chieftaincy conundrum was not resolved more of such would be witnessed in the territory.

One of the residents, Oba Clement, said there are still pockets of violence at some secluded areas not patrolled by security operatives.

The dusk till dawn curfew imposed by the FCT minister and heavy deployment of armed security operatives have helped calm the situation, and check reprisal attacks.  

“The security is not enough to cover some corners,” he said, adding that people still lived in fear especially those from other ethnic backgrounds.

“One man was attacked on Wednesday,” said Adamu Alhaji, another resident. 

Aso Chronicle observed that a similar situation is obtained in Kwali where a chieftaincy dispute if not properly handled, could lead to disturbance.

The people of Kwali want the minister to elevate the Etsu Kwali to second class status and not appointment of a Sarkin Kwali.