From David Onuoja, Abuja
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), FCT Council, has appealed to the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, to extend his development projects to their secretariat in Utako, Abuja.
The NUJ FCT Council, led by its Chairman, Comrade Grace Ike, made this appeal in a communique after their monthly Congress meeting on Saturday, April 12, 2025.
The Congress called on the Minister, fondly referred to as “Mr. Project” for his visible development strides across the FCT, to extend similar attention to the NUJ FCT Council Secretariat.
Delegates described the current facility as unfit for a professional body of journalists operating in the nation’s capital, citing poor conditions and infrastructural decay.
The NUJ FCT Council also sought Minister Wike’s support in completing the long-delayed NUJ Pentagon project, envisioned as a landmark edifice for journalists in Abuja.
The Council believes Minister Wike’s intervention could transform their secretariat and the NUJ Pentagon project into lasting legacies.
“The current state of our Secretariat is appalling. We are earnestly appealing to the Honourable Minister to undertake a facility tour and see for himself the infrastructural decay we contend with.
“We believe that under his leadership, the Secretariat and Pentagon project can finally be transformed into a lasting legacy,” the Congress resolved.
In addition to infrastructure concerns, the NUJ FCT Council used the platform to draw attention to broader socio-economic issues affecting residents of the capital and Nigerians at large.
Congress, members expressed concerns about the high cost of living, expensive internet data, poor electricity supply, and rising maternal mortality rates in the country.
The Congress decried persistent power outages across the FCT, attributing the problem to the inefficiencies of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC).
They urged the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to investigate billing practices and introduce measures to ensure affordability and consumer protection.
