Why FCT cannot finish costly millennium tower – Wike

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has said the FCT Administration cannot afford to complete the abandoned Millennium Tower project because of its huge cost.

Speaking on Thursday during an inspection of ongoing road and infrastructure projects in Abuja, Wike said the amount needed to complete the tower has increased to between N300 billion and N400 billion.

He explained that spending such a large amount on one project would leave no money for other important infrastructure projects across the Federal Capital Territory.

Wike said he has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to take over the project and fund it as a national project because of its importance and tourism potential.

According to him, the Millennium Tower contract was first awarded during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. However, years of delays and rising construction costs have pushed the project’s completion cost much higher.

“We have discussed with the contractor. The project was awarded during Obasanjo’s administration, and the contractor is now asking for between N300 billion and N400 billion to complete it. If the FCT spends that amount on one project, we will have to stop every other project in Abuja,” Wike said.

He added that discussions with President Tinubu are ongoing to have the Federal Government classify the tower as a national project.

Despite the challenge, Wike expressed satisfaction with the progress of other infrastructure projects in Abuja. He praised Arab Contractors for the quality of work on the dualisation of the Airport Road to Kuje.

The minister recalled that when the current administration came into office in August 2023, the contractor was not working on the project. He said the company later returned to the site after discussions with the FCT Administration.

Wike said the road project is expected to be completed and handed over to President Tinubu in December.

He also assured residents that the FCT Administration would continue to pay contractors and maintain a good working relationship with them to ensure projects are completed on schedule.

According to him, the trust between the government and contractors has helped keep projects moving, even when payments are delayed.

Wike said the Tinubu administration has made significant progress in transforming Abuja through quality road construction and other infrastructure projects.

He also assured residents that his administration would not abandon any ongoing project.

“We have completed many projects that were awarded years ago, and all the projects awarded under this administration will also be completed. We are optimistic that the roads we inspected today will be finished before the end of the year,” he said.