Abuja Teachers’ strike: Wike seeks intervention of National Assembly
ABUJA: Federal Capital Territory FCT minister, Nyesom Wike on Thursday urged the various National Assembly committees on Area Councils in the territory to focus more on the activities of the council chairmen and ensure that they do not violate their social contract with the people.
The minister gave the charge while responding to questions shortly after inspecting some ongoing projects in the territory.
Wike was speaking against the backdrop of the strike by primary school teachers in the territory, who are essentially under the Councils.
Asked whether the council bosses were too powerful to rein in, Wike said; “I don’t know what you mean by too powerful. All I will say is that they were elected and they were not appointed. So we have been talking to them to understand that, this is a democracy and one thing you must know is that denying people education is like trying to say that you are causing a coup in the country or in FCT.
“Be assured that everything is being done to see that the teachers go back (to the classrooms).
“But you see, the problem we have, just like what you have said, we have committees of the FCT in the House of Representatives and the Senate. We have chairmen of the Area Councils. The chairmen of committees on Area Councils, their responsibility is to oversee what the Councils are doing because the legislature of the FCT today is the National Assembly. That is, the chairman of House Committee of the National Assembly has to look at the problems in the area councils. But it is unfortunate they concentrate in just inviting minister to come and defend (budget). I have never seen in my life where the minister has defended a budget and another House Committee Chairman on Area Councils will tell the Minister of State to come and present a budget.
“People don’t do what they are supposed to do. They concentrate on things that do not fall within their jurisdictions. By now, I thought that the chairman of the Committee’s on FCT Area Councils would have come up to say, Chairmen of Area Councils, this is not right. What do we need to solve this problem? But they will focus on irrelevant things, trying to see how there is division, there is discord in the FCT.
“We have said, those things will not work. But go home and sleep very well. Very soon, this problem should be sorted out, regarding the primary school teachers, because nobody can feel happy when teachers are at home. It is the basic thing that we must do and I can assure you, very soon, that matter will be resolved”, he pledged.
The minister who also inspected the OSEX II road leading to Wassa, lamented that the project was awarded over 10 years ago but abandoned.
He directed that the contract be expanded to include streetlights.
“You remember that this job, that of OSEX II leading to Wassa, was not awarded by this administration. That was a job that was awarded by previous administration about 10 years ago, but in the spirit of continuity of Mr President, he said we must complete all those projects. One of the times we went to visit, I asked this question, and it was said that at that time, it was not included and I did direct that we must have streetlights on that road.
“As I speak to you, CGC submitted their quotation for the streetlight even though It will not be part of the inauguration process. But what is important is that we are bent on providing streetlights to enable us improve on security in those areas. So go home and sleep with your two eyes closed, we are going to put streetlights on that OSEX II, Apo to Wassa.
“Even without that, look at how the residents of Apo, the Apo Mechanic Market, see how happy they are. So be assured that all those things will be done”, he added.