Tinubu Renews Hope For FCT Satellite Towns, Says Era Of Neglecting Suburbs Over

* Inaugurates massive 194-kilometre water supply network linking Karu, Orozo, Jikwoyi, Kurudu, others

Deji Elumoye in Abuja 

President Bola Tinubu on Monday declared that the era of neglecting suburbs of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is over under his government’s Renewed Hope Agenda (RHA).

According to him, the Renewed Hope Agenda is his administration’s sacred covenant with the Nigerian people, recalling that he had promised that governance would no longer be a theoretical exercise confined to the boardrooms of city centres, while residents in the periphery thirsted for basic amenities.

Speaking in Kurudu, Abuja, when he officially inaugurated the massive Water Supply Network linking Karu, Orozo, Jikwoyi, Kurudu and other adjourning satellite towns, the president, who was represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima, said he “promised a government that listens, a government that plans and, crucially, a government that delivers”.

Tinubu expressed a deep sense of fulfilment and gratitude to God, noting that the massive Water Supply Network is a fulfilment of that promise.

“We are here not just to cut a ribbon, but to breathe life into a fundamental human right that has eluded this bustling community for far too long. Today, we declare that the era of neglect for our satellite towns is officially over,” he stated.

The president recalled that just about a year ago, when his administration inaugurated the Greater Abuja Water Supply Project, he stood before the nation and gave a clear directive.

“The metropolitan loops must not end in the elite districts. They must stretch. They must expand into our satellite towns, where the heartbeat of Abuja’s working-class population truly resides,” he recalled.

He said when the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, brought the proposal for the Karu Water Supply Project, he did not hesitate, adding that his administration knew that water is life, and that denying people clean water amounts to denying them health, dignity and economic progress.

To demonstrate government’s unwavering commitment, Tinubu said the government did not allow the traditional shackles of bureaucratic delay to obstruct funding, as payments were approved on time and the contractor, CGC Nigeria Limited, delivered promptly.

“And today, we are commissioning over 194 kilometres of secondary and tertiary pipeline networks, bringing treated, safe and potable water directly to the doorsteps of Karu, Orozo, Jikwoyi, Kurudu, and surrounding communities,” he stated.

The president commended the FCT Minister for delivering, stressing that leadership is not measured by the eloquence of television commentary or the bitterness of empty rhetoric, but by its tangible and verifiable impact on the lives of ordinary citizens.

“Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, what we are witnessing in the FCT today—across transport, healthcare, education, housing, roads, and now massive water infrastructure—is a testament to what happens when vision meets executive capacity. Thank you, ‘Mr Projects,’ for your leadership,” he said.

Tinubu regretted that for decades, while residents of Karu watched their community grow into a thriving and teeming population, they were left to depend on unsafe boreholes and water vendors.

He added, however, that previous administrations left promises in their wake, even as he said his administration “does not trade in promises” but results.

Charging the people of Karu, Jikwoyi and other surrounding communities on infrastructure maintenance, the president said: “This infrastructure belongs to you. It was built with your commonwealth and designed for your well-being. 

“I therefore urge you to safeguard these installations against vandalism and illegal connections. Do not look the other way if unscrupulous elements try to compromise what has taken years of effort and resources to deliver. Treat this water as the precious resource that it is.”

Tinubu announced that the government was replicating the interventions in Bwari and other Area Councils, even as he assured residents that the government’s commitment to urban renewal and rural integration remains absolute.

Earlier, FCT Minister, Wike, said the FCT Administration was immensely grateful to the president for the support he has given for the execution of people-oriented projects across the nation’s capital, including the satellite towns. 

He said the completion of the water project was part of the presidential directive for the FCT administration to extend the provision of critical infrastructure to the satellite towns across the capital territory. 

The minister also reiterated the commitment of the Tinubu administration through the FCT management, in delivering projects and programmes that will uplift the lives and livelihoods of residents of the territory.

On her part, FCT Minister of State, Dr. Mariya Bunkure, thanked the president and the vice-president for his untiring efforts in supporting the work of transforming the infrastructure landscape in the FCT and beyond.

In an overview of the project, Executive Secretary of FCDA, Richard Yunana Dauda, said the FCT administration had the wellbeing and interest of the residents of Karu and environs at the conception of the water project, which utilised the existing reservoir tank in the area, while the distribution facilities connects over 1,000 distribution lines to service the satellite town and adjourning communities.

He thanked the president for the support in the completion of the project which, according to him, marks a significant advancement in the provision of potable water to Karu, Jikwoyi, Kurudu and adjourning communities in the area.