By Philip Yatai

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, has urged youths in the territory to mobilise support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid, citing key institutional interventions.

Wike spoke on Wednesday during an interactive session with FCT youths in Abuja, where he urged them to assess political leadership through concrete achievements rather than social media narratives.

He said successive administrations had failed to establish dedicated administrative structures for youths and women since the creation of the FCT in 1976, until President Tinubu established two secretariats.

According to him, the establishment of the FCT Youth Secretariat and Women Affairs Secretariat provided a permanent foundation for structured governance, engagement and youth inclusion in the territory.

“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?” Wike queried.

The minister urged young people to distinguish between visionary leaders willing to make difficult structural decisions and those who relied on unfulfilled political promises.

“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 added.

Wike also defended Tinubu’s economic policies, describing the removal of the petrol subsidy as a courageous decision that saved national revenue previously spent on an unsustainable subsidy regime.

He explained that revenue saved from subsidy removal had significantly increased monthly allocations to state and local governments for infrastructure development and public services.

He further cited the stable academic calendar in Nigerian universities over the past three years as evidence of the administration’s commitment to stability in the education sector.

Speaking on behalf of the youth groups, Mr Isaac David, President of the FCT Youth Network, urged youths in the territory to support Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid by registering and using their Permanent Voter Cards.

David outlined proposals developed in collaboration with international partners, traditional leaders and other stakeholders, including the establishment of an FCT Education Trust Fund to attract private sector contributions to local schools.

Similarly, Destiny Yamawo, a youth leader, called for increased budgetary allocations to the FCT Scholarship Board to accommodate more beneficiaries, including students seeking scholarships abroad.

Yamawo also urged the administration to improve teachers’ welfare through the Universal Basic Education Board to prevent recurring industrial disputes that keep pupils away from school.

On the ongoing review of the FCT master plan, Yamawo appealed for indigenous communities to be integrated into development plans, with adequate compensation provided where relocation became unavoidable.

In his remarks, Mr Hassan Aliyu, President of the Indigenous Youths of the FCT, sought Wike’s intervention in approving scholarship applications for FCT indigenes.

He said the list of successful applicants had reportedly been forwarded to the minister’s office.

Aliyu also requested dedicated buses to enable students to attend academic conferences, leadership programmes and other educational engagements.

Apostle Peter Anyebe, Chairman of the Youth Wing of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), FCT, commended Wike’s infrastructure and urban development initiatives, saying the transformation of the nation’s capital was visible.

Mr Adam Ahmed, Chairman of the Muslim Youth Society of Nigeria, also lauded the minister’s development record, citing projects undertaken during his tenure as Rivers governor and ongoing infrastructure interventions in the FCT.(NAN)

Edited by Abiemwense Moru