By Sarah NEGEDU
President Bola Tinubu has defended his administration’s decision to remove the Federal Capital Territory Administration from the Treasury Single Account, TSA, saying the policy has accelerated infrastructure delivery and improved project execution across Abuja.
The President said the decision was taken to give the FCTA the financial flexibility to access funds, engage financial institutions and execute critical projects without the bureaucratic bottlenecks associated with the TSA, insisting that the results were now evident in the rapid transformation of the nation’s capital.
Tinubu’s position was conveyed on Monday, by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, during the commissioning of 10 units of staff quarters built by the FCTA for the Nigerian Law School, Bwari.
In October 2023, Tinubu approved the removal of the FCTA from the Treasury Single Account following a request by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, who argued that the policy was constraining the administration’s ability to fund infrastructure projects and access credit facilities. The approval granted the FCTA greater financial autonomy to deploy its internally generated revenue towards development.
Explaining the rationale behind the decision, the President said his administration was determined to reform public institutions and create an environment where critical projects could be delivered without unnecessary delays.
“When we pulled the FCT Administration out of the Treasury Single Account, TSA, there were skeptics. There were those who questioned the wisdom of that financial liberation. But we did it because we knew that local administration must have the liquidity, the speed, and the corporate flexibility to interface with financial institutions and deliver critical projects without bureaucratic strangulation. Today, the results are glaring.”
Using the Nigerian Law School project as an example of that policy in action, Tinubu announced fresh interventions for the institution, including the construction of 20 additional staff quarters, a new auditorium and more student hostels, while reaffirming plans to digitise its academic and administrative operations.
He also said the administration was expanding judicial infrastructure in the FCT through the construction of magistrates’ courts and residential quarters for judges.
“These 10 units of four-bedroom flats are not an isolated gesture. They represent the first phase of a broader commitment to judicial and educational welfare.
“In addition to this, we are funding a brand-new auditorium for the law school and building new hostels for students of the school; we are also actively pushing for the full digitization of the school’s administrative and academic operations, mirroring the technological leap we are already executing within the FCT High Courts.
“We cannot build a world-class legal system with dilapidated infrastructure. This is why, concurrently, we have constructed the Abuja division of the Court of Appeal, we are building Magistrate courts across the FCT and constructing a state-of-the-art residential quarter for our judges in the heart of the city—to safeguard their security, protect their autonomy, and guarantee their comfort.”
The President also praised Wike for extending the FCTA’s infrastructure drive beyond roads to strengthening key public institutions, citing the minister’s intervention in resolving a long-standing land ownership issue affecting the Nigerian Law School.
“Barr. Wike has not just built roads; he has looked at the institutional fabric of this capital territory and declared an emergency where emergency was due. When he discovered that this premier institution, the Nigerian Law School, had operated for years in Bwari without a formal title, he moved very swiftly to correct the anomaly by waiving the Certificate of Occupancy (C-of-O) processing fees and demanding its issuance within one week. By so doing he has corrected a longstanding structural and historical failure in this legal institution.”
Tinubu also reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to completing all projects it initiates.
“Let it be known across the length and breadth of this nation that our administration will not leave projects abandoned. We will fund what we flag off, we will finish what we start, and we will continue to invest heavily in the future of our youth.”
Earlier, Wike revealed that he was shocked to discover that the Nigerian Law School had occupied its expansive Bwari campus for years without a Certificate of Occupancy.
“It shocked me when the new DG of Law School came to see me in the office to pay a courtesy call. What shocked me was that an institution of this nature, occupying quite an expanse of land, do not even have any title document to show that this property belongs to them.”
The minister said he immediately approved the issuance of the title document and waived all statutory fees, adding that the Certificate of Occupancy would be presented to the institution before the close of the event.
“I said go home, you will get your Certificate of Occupancy, and all the fees to be paid are hereby waived.”
Wike also disclosed that the President approved the construction of the additional 20 staff quarters after learning about the institution’s accommodation challenges during the ceremony.
“While the DG was talking, and then while the Chairman of Legal Education was also talking, you asked me one simple question. And what is it? You said, why didn’t I do more for them? I said I have no money. You (Mr. President) now told me to announce to them that we are going to build 20 more of this complex.
“Mr. President, I want to sincerely thank you for giving me the approval to build 20 more of this staff quarters.”
The FCT Minister further directed contractors handling two 316-bed student hostel projects to return to site immediately, assuring them that all outstanding payments would be settled this month to ensure completion before the end of the year.
“Mr. Acting Executive Secretary, I hereby direct you to go and tell the contractors to move back to site, and that these two buildings must be completed before the end of the year. Every kobo owed to the contractors must be paid this month.”
Also speaking, the FCT Minister of State, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud, described the staff quarters as a strategic investment in legal education and staff welfare, saying the project reflects the FCT Administration’s commitment to strengthening institutions that drive national development.
She commended President Bola Tinubu for prioritising infrastructure under the Renewed Hope Agenda and praised FCT Minister Nyesom Wike for advancing institutional and infrastructural development across the FCT through projects that improve service delivery and workers’ welfare.
