The minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, says the FCT Administration will construct Gwagwa, Karimo to Dei-Dei road, to ease traffic congestion.

Mr Wike made the pledge while inaugurating the construction of access roads to Saburi 1 and 2 in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Abuja, on Wednesday.

The road begins from the Outer Northern Expressway (Murtala Mohammed Expressway, also known as Zuba Kubwa Expressway) to Old Keffi Road, near Dei-Dei International Market.

The decision to construct the road followed a request by the AMAC chairman, Christopher Maikalangu, to the minister to consider expanding the road to ease traffic congestion.

Mr Maikalangu had described the road as a strategic commercial road in the whole of FCT, but in a bad state, narrow and required expansion for the road users.

He also said that the Saburi Road, from the expressway to Old Keffi Road, would ease the suffering of the people, particularly during the rainy season.

He added that the road, when completed, would trigger socio-economic activities and other development strides in the area.

Responding, Mr Wike asked the people at the event if they were in consensus with Mr Maikalangu’s request to construct the Gwagwa-Karimo-Dei-Dei road, and the highly elated residents unanimously answered yes.

The minister, thereafter, said, “Consider it to be done.”

This, according to him, is the essence of governance when the government responds to the needs of the people.

“Mr President has emphasised that our people in the rural areas must be given attention because they constitute the larger part of the population.

“So it is not only where the elite are living, but also where the poor ones are, so that we will be able to reduce the level of insecurity, make economic activities to thrive and have our farmers bring in their goods to the market,” he said.

He called on the residents to pray for President Bola Tinubu for good health and God guidance to be able to keep his campaign promise of providing dividends of democracy to the people.

He said that the construction of additional roads across the six areas councils of the FCT would be inaugurated in the next three months.

The minister said that the commitment was part of efforts to keep people’s hopes alive in line with the renewed hope agenda of Mr Tinubu.

He appealed to the Senate and House Committees on FCT to support in passing the FCT statutory budget which would be submitted soon to enable the Administration to deliver more roads and other projects in rural communities.

Earlier, the chief of Jiwa, Idris Musa, thanked Mr Wike for constructing rural roads across the six area councils.

“Today is a great day for us and other Nigerians that are jampacked in Jiwa Chiefdom. The road you are constructing now, we are very grateful,” he said.

Mr Musa, thereafter, announced the conferment of the traditional title of Jagaban (Chief Warrior) Kudu of Jiwa Chiefdom on the FCT minister, making it the fifth traditional title conferred on the minister by FCT communities.

So far, the FCT minister has inaugurated the construction of six rural roads totaling 42.2 kilometres across six area councils.

The roads include 11 km road in Kwali Area Council, five km dual carriageway in Kuje, nine km road in Gwagwalada, 7.2 km road in Bwari, and five km road each in Abaji and AMAC. 

(NAN)