President Bola Tinubu has narrated how he threatened to sack Nyesom Wike, minister of federal capital territory (FCT), if his policies in Abuja, the nation’s capital, did not favour the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Tinubu spoke on Sunday when Wike led some leaders of the FCT residents to the State House on Eid-el-Fitr homage.
The president said the minister’s efforts have restored abandoned projects in the FCT and improved healthcare facilities.
He said Wike’s accomplishment as a southerner in Abuja, north-central Nigeria, serves as a positive reflection of the country’s diversity.
Wike is the first southerner to be appointed as a FCT minister since 1999.
The president recounted the conversation between himself and Wike when the minister came to request for the exclusion of the FCT administration from the treasury single account (TSA).
“I remember the day Nyesom Wike came to me and said, ‘Please, take us out of this problem of TSA so that I can do more work and achieve more’,” Tinubu said.
“Then I said, ‘Okay, tell me what you’re about to do.’
“And he presented it. I threw in my own political guide: ‘Would that give me any opportunity for my party to win the election in FCT?’
“I said, ‘I know where you are coming from, your own party or my party. If this thing goes too much in your own favour, you will lose your job’.
“Then he said, ‘Okay, we settle that, Oga’.
“Surprisingly, Nyesom Wike is not from the north. He’s not a Hausa man. He’s from the southern part of Nigeria.
“His ability to work in the centre of the northern part of Nigeria is yielding fruits. That is a very good reflection of our diversity that we must use for our prosperity.”
Tinubu appealed for unity among Nigerians, emphasising the need to support one another in both times of joy and need.
On his part, Wike said removing FCT administration from TSA, appointment of permanent secretaries, and creation of FCT civil service commission have enhanced governance and service delivery in the capital city.
During the visit, Wike invited the president to the commissioning of projects completed in the past 12 months to commemorate Tinubu’s second anniversary.
Wike also on behalf of the FCT administration presented a Sallah special greetings card to Tinubu.
