The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has declared that President Bola Tinubu has ended decades of neglect of young people and women in the territory through the establishment of dedicated secretariats to address their concerns.
Wike said the creation of the FCT Youth Secretariat and Women Affairs Secretariat marked a historic intervention in the administration of the territory, which was established in 1976 but operated for decades without dedicated administrative structures for the two groups.
The minister spoke on Wednesday in Abuja during an interactive session with FCT youths, where he challenged them to assess Tinubu’s administration against previous governments based on tangible achievements rather than political sentiments and social media narratives.
Recalling the history of the FCT, Wike questioned what successive administrations had done to integrate youths and women into the governance structure.
“The FCT was created in 1976. What was the position of the youths and women then? Was there any establishment of a youth secretariat? Was there any establishment of a Women Secretariat? What forum was given to the youths and women to be included in the administration?” he queried.
He argued that previous governments had failed to establish institutional structures to address the needs of young people and women, insisting that the Tinubu administration had taken a different approach by laying a foundation for their sustained inclusion in governance.
According to him, the establishment of the secretariats should not be dismissed as a political gesture but recognised as a deliberate effort to address longstanding challenges.
“If these youth and women secretariats had been created then, probably most of the things you are talking about today would not have been raised again. Somebody has now come to lay a foundation to take care of those things that were not previously cared for,” he said.
Wike urged young people to distinguish between leaders who make promises and those who take difficult decisions to deliver meaningful development.
He cautioned against allowing social media narratives to influence their political choices, stressing that public office holders should be assessed based on measurable performance.
“This is not social media. This is not about telling lies or being a content developer. We are being practical. It is time for us to stop giving fish lies and begin to be realistic,” he said.
The minister also defended Tinubu’s economic reform agenda, particularly the removal of the petrol subsidy, describing it as a courageous decision that previous presidential contenders had avoided despite recognising the unsustainable nature of the policy.
He maintained that the subsidy regime had consumed public resources that could have been channelled into education, infrastructure and other critical sectors.
Wike added that subsidy removal had increased allocations to states and local governments, providing them with greater financial capacity to meet their obligations and implement development projects.
He also cited relative stability in the university system, particularly the absence of recurring nationwide industrial strikes, as another achievement deserving recognition.
“For the past three years, have we had any strike in our universities? No. Why is that not something we should recognise? Money has remained available to the sub-nationals. States and local governments now have more money,” he said.
Wike stressed that economic reforms required courage, consistency and patience, noting that difficult decisions could attract initial criticism but deliver long-term benefits when properly implemented.
He further described purposeful leadership as the foundation of institutional development, arguing that meaningful progress was impossible without clear direction.
Earlier, the youths presented proposals and demands covering education, scholarships, employment, skills acquisition, transportation and the protection of indigenous communities.
The President of the FCT Youth Network, Comrade Isaac David, disclosed that youth organisations had developed an FCT Youth Development Policy in collaboration with international organisations, traditional rulers and other stakeholders.
He appealed to Wike to support the establishment of an FCT Education Trust Fund to attract additional resources for the education sector through contributions from corporate organisations and development partners.
David also urged youths to support Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027, calling on them to demonstrate their commitment through their Permanent Voter Cards.
Similarly, youth leader Destiny Yamawo called for increased budgetary allocations to the FCT Scholarship Board to accommodate more beneficiaries, including students seeking foreign scholarships.
He also urged the administration to improve teachers’ welfare through the Universal Basic Education structure to prevent recurring industrial disputes that disrupt learning in schools.
On the ongoing review of the FCT master plan, Yamawo appealed for the inclusion of indigenous communities in development plans and adequate compensation where relocation becomes unavoidable.
The President of the Indigenous Youths of the FCT, Hassan Aliyu, also sought Wike’s intervention in approving scholarship applications for FCT indigenes, disclosing that the list of successful applicants had reportedly been forwarded to the minister’s office.
He further requested dedicated buses to enable students to attend academic conferences, leadership programmes and other educational engagements.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the FCT Youth Wing of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Apostle Peter Anyebe, commended Wike’s infrastructure and urban development initiatives, describing the transformation of the nation’s capital as visible.
The Chairman of the Muslim youth organisation, Adam Ahmed, also praised the minister’s development record, referencing his infrastructure projects as Rivers State governor and ongoing interventions in the FCT.
The youths expressed their readiness to collaborate with the administration to translate the proposals presented at the meeting into practical programmes capable of improving opportunities and living conditions for young people across the six area councils.