Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja
FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike has sought the intervention of President Bola Tinubu on the completion of the abandoned Abuja Millennium Tower which has had its cost varied from between N300 billion and N400 billion.
Wike made the appeal yesterday during inspection of ongoing critical projects in the nation’s capital.
He declared that it would be suicidal and financially unviable for the FCT administration to finance the project given its budgetary constraint and several other critical infrastructure projects needed across the territory.
The ambitious project located in the central business district was awarded on November 17, 2005 by President Olusegun Obasanjo at the original cost of N61 billion to make Nigeria a centerpiece of international concerts and conferences.
Wike urged Tinubu to consider funding the landmark project located in the same corridor with the National Mosque and Christian Centre as a strategic national project and asset.
He stressed the need for a realistic approach to the Federal Capital Territory’s developmental priorities, noting that tying down such huge outlay into the project at the expense of other critical needs could potentially cripple the territory’s finances
“Well, you know that is a national project. And I believe that it is one project that the government should reconsider. It should be a tourist centre project. The capital involved is too huge for the FCT to handle as a single project.
“As I speak to you, it’s not less than N300 to N400 billion that the contractor is talking about. And if you look at it, how do we carry out such a project? It means that every other project in Abuja we will have to abandon. But we are still talking to the President that he should reconsider it as a national project. So, that’s where we are,” Wike said.
Wike ascribed the abandonment of the project to many years of neglect, shifting economic priorities and delayed execution which have pushed the financial requirements to an unprecedented high.