Why we may not complete Abuja’s Millennium Tower project – Wike

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, says the FCT Administration could not complete the abandoned Millennium Tower project due to the multi-billion-naira sum demanded by the contractor.

Mr Wike, who spoke after inspecting some ongoing projects in Abuja on Thursday, said the contractor handling the massive project demanded between N300 billion and N400 billion to complete it.

The minister explained that the FCT Administration could not shoulder the staggering completion cost without abandoning every other project in the nation’s capital.

He described the project, awarded during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, as a national monument with immense tourism potential.

According to him, its funding is too capital-intensive for the FCTA’s statutory budget.

“You know the Millennium Tower is a national project, and I believe that it’s one project the government should reconsider because it should be a tourist centre project.

“However, the capital involved is too huge for the FCTA to have it in its statutory budget. Committing the FCTA’s limited resources to the tower would completely paralyse other critical infrastructure developments across the city.

“Remember that the project was awarded under the Obasanjo regime. As I speak to you, it’s not less than N300 billion to N400 billion that the contractor is talking about.

“If you look at it, how do we carry such a project? It means that every other project in Abuja will have to be abandoned.”

Mr Wike said he had initiated talks with President Bola Tinubu to prevent the iconic structure from remaining an abandoned eyesore.

“We are still talking to the President that we should reconsider it as a national project. So, that’s where we are,” Mr Wike said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Millennium Tower project, conceived as a central feature of the Abuja skyline, is designed to house a cultural centre, museum, and expansive tourist facilities.

However, decades after its conception, its future now hinges on a strategic intervention from the presidency.