By Emmanuella Oghenetega
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barrister Ezenwo Nyesom Wike has flagged off Lot 1 of the Bwari township water supply project.
This, is in steady strides to ensuring improved access to clean and potable water in all satellite towns of the FCT.
Speaking at the flag-off ceremony in Abuja today Wednesday, August 20, 2025, Barrister Wike reiterated the commitment of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration to provide clean water for all FCT residents.
He announced that President Tinubu has approved the immediate release of 50% of the contract sum for both the Bwari and the upcoming Karu water projects to ensure their timely completion, assuring that both projects were scheduled for completion and inauguration during President Tinubu’s third anniversary celebration in May, 2026.
Barrister Wike also unveiled a strategic timeline for future projects, revealing that water projects for the Kuje, Kwali, and Gwagwalada Area Councils will be included in the FCT’s 2026 statutory budget, confidently stating that all six Area Councils in the FCT would have access to clean, potable water by the time President Tinubu’s first term concludes in 2027.
“Today, we are in Bwari. Tomorrow, we will be in Karu, in essence, taking two Area Councils together. By the time we finish with Bwari and Karu, in next year’s budget, by the grace of God, we will go to Kuje and Kwali. By 2027, by the grace of God, we will be talking about Gwagwalada and Abaji. By the time Mr. President’s four-year tenure expires, we would have touched all the satellite towns by providing them clean, potable water.
“Of course this will save you the cost of digging your own borehole, providing of pipes and the rest. All you would need to do is to just link up to the various pipe networks and then the water will flow, clean and treated water. Unlike the one from your borehole, this is fully treated water”.
Barrister Wike while noting that the execution phase of the water projects will provide direct and indirect employment for the teeming youths of the FCT, appealed to the relevant stakeholders, including the traditional rulers and other community members, to take ownership of the projects and give the needed support to the contractors, emphasizing that water is a fundamental human need.
He said, “I appeal to the traditional rulers, I appeal to our youth, I appeal to our women, I appeal to all our community members to take this project as your own project. This is the first time a government has said that you too deserve to have potable clean water because water is life, not just saying it but implementing it.
“I think this is even more important than the road projects you have protected when the contractors are on site. If you can protect contractors when they are constructing roads, you can imagine what you will do as regards the supply of water, which is one of the basic needs in life. So, I urge you to collaborate and support the company so that we can achieve this on record time”.
In her vote of thanks, the Minister of State FCT, Dr Mariya Mahmoud described the Bwari water township project as history in the making, emphasizing that the project is more than just laying pipes, but about improving the quality of life of families, ensuring children grow up healthier, and providing clean, safe water for mothers.
Similarly, the Minister also commissioned the rehabilitated Phase II Water Treatment Plant at the Lower Usuma Dam in Bwari Area Council.
Speaking during the commissioning ceremony in Abuja, where he stated that the project, originally awarded in 2022 at a cost of N50 billion, was completed under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, which underscores government’s commitment to providing critical infrastructure and essential services in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda.
The Minister explained that the rehabilitation of Phase II of the Lower Usuma Dam water treatment plant will increase the plant’s carrying capacity and improve the supply of clean and potable water to the residents of the FCT.
Barr. Wike said, “Water is life, and it is an essential service that we must provide for the residents of Abuja. This project is crucial because it increases the carrying capacity of the plant and will improve the supply of clean and potable water to our people”.
Speaking on the strategic investments by government to boost water supply in the FCT, Barrister Wike also disclosed that the Federal Executive Council recently awarded contracts for the rehabilitation of Phases I, III, and IV of the Lower Usuma Dam water treatment plants, stressing that the extensive effort is part of a broader strategy to ensure a stable and reliable water supply across the entire FCT.
Furthermore, the Minister highlighted the FCT Administration’s focus on satellite towns, with the upcoming flag-off of new water projects in Bwari and Karu. These projects, costing over N90 billion, the Minister said, are designed to extend essential services beyond the city center and improve the quality of life for residents in these communities.
Barrister Wike equally dispelled claims that his administration was focusing solely on road projects, citing ongoing projects in the education sector, including the rehabilitation of schools in rural communities and the various ongoing water supply projects.
“I have told the Mandate Secretary of Education to release the number of schools in the entire FCT, under the President Tinubu administration, that we have completed rehabilitation and all the ongoing ones. I believe by the time that list is released, Nigerians will know what we have done in the education sector”, the Minister stated.
He noted a significant increase in the FCT’s monthly Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) from N9 billion to N30 billion, which has enabled the payment of contractors and the funding of new projects.
“When we came on board, we had a monthly IGR of N9 billion, but as we speak today, by the grace of God, every month, we are generating not less than N30 billion. Now we have come here to commission this project. If we were not saving this money, would we have paid the contractors? The Federal Government has approved the rehabilitation of phase one, three and phase four. If we were not saving funds, we wouldn’t be providing water to Bwari, Karu and other satellite towns”.
Barrister Wike, while addressing issues of development and accountability in the award of contracts, vowed to fight corruption and ensure that public funds are used judiciously for the benefit of the people.
“People are complaining that all projects in Abuja were abandoned; why would it not be abandoned when funds that are meant for development are channeled towards unnecessary things. Let us work for our people and change lives. Buying computers every year will not help us. Going to America for a conference on land administration will not help. What will help is the development of our people, the development of our communities, providing roads, providing schools, providing water and providing security. That is what is important”.
Speaking on recent media reports and protests over the alleged debts owed to indigenous contractors by the FCTA, the Minister said no amount of blackmail or intimidation will deter his administration from its core mission.
He challenged those making allegations about unpaid local contractors to produce documentation proving he awarded the contracts, asserting that he will not be pressured to pay for projects he did not approve.
The Minister made it clear that the issue was a result of indiscipline and a deeply entrenched culture of corruption, stressing that many of the contracts were allegedly awarded by civil servants without his knowledge or approval.
He said the claims of unpaid bills were a manifestation of corruption fighting back against efforts to reform the system and vowed to defeat corruption, adding that it would not be business as usual.
“The problem in this country is that when you want to fight corruption, corruption will fight you back and it’s corruption that is fighting back and we are going to defeat corruption.
“The bane of our problem is indiscipline. I came on board to meet complaints that indigenous contractors and local contractors were being owed billions of naira. I said who awarded these contracts. Civil servants stay in their offices and award contracts of various sums without the Minister knowing. Then you will be a Minister sitting in the office and people will tell you that you are owing N15 billion when you don’t know when it was awarded”, he said.
“Certainly, it will not happen. Nobody can intimidate me on that”, he stressed, adding, “If I award contracts, I will pay and those who know me know that I don’t award contracts when we don’t have money. We must do things right. That it was not done right yesterday does not mean it will not be done right today. People must know that it cannot continue to be business as usual. You cannot embarrass me. Go and meet those who awarded those contracts to you and tell them your children are out of school”.
Earlier in her vote of thanks, the Minister of State for the FCT, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud, expressed joy at the completion of phase II of the Lower Usuma Dam Water treatment plant, describing it as a major milestone, while thanking President Tinubu for his unwavering support for infrastructural renewal. She also emphasized the importance of maintaining the new infrastructure for the benefit of current and future generations.
