Federal Capital Territory (FCT), minister Barrister Nyesom Wike, has debunked rumours doing rounds that the provision of infrastructure for the judiciary by the FCT Administration amounts to executive interference.
He clarified that the FCTA is also responsible for providing similar facilities for the National Assembly, emphasising the collaborative role of government in national development.
Wike made this assertion during inauguration of the design, construction, and furnishing of an annex office for the Body of Benchers in Abuja on Friday.
He said: “As we speak today, it is the Federal Capital Territory that is providing the official residence of the legislature. It is also the FCT that is building the new complex of the National Assembly.
“At the end of the day, these projects will be handed over to the respective arms of the government to manage. This is not about interference but about fostering development”.
The minister disclosed that the annex office project for the Body of Benchers was included in the 2023 supplementary budget of the FCT, which was approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and passed by the National Assembly.
“This project is part of the supplementary budget assented to by Mr. President on November 8, 2023. There is nothing hidden about this initiative,” he stressed, expressing gratitude to the President for his support.
Wike assured stakeholders that the project would be completed within its 10-month timeline. He also announced plans to provide residential apartments for lecturers at the Nigerian Law School in Bwari, which had already received presidential approval.
In his response to a request by the Chairman of the Body of Benchers, Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, Wike committed to constructing a fire station to serve institutions in the area. The Minister directed the inclusion of the fire station in the FCT’s 2025 budget.
Earlier, Awomolo expressed gratitude to President Tinubu and the FCT Minister for their commitment to improving infrastructure for the judiciary, the Nigerian Law School, and the Body of Benchers. He highlighted the interdependence of the three arms of government.
“No arm of government is so sufficiently endowed to perform its constitutional functions alone. Support and collaboration from the Executive are necessary and do not undermine the independence of other arms of government,” Awomolo said.
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