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| Minister of the FCT Nyesom Wike [Photo: Tribun] |
Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), handed ten vehicles to third-class chiefs in the federal capital on Friday and pledged greater welfare for traditional leaders.
The chiefs came from the chiefdoms of Gomani, Yaba, Bwari, Pai, Garki, Jiwa, Wako, Rubochi, Gwargwada, and Zuba.
Mr Wike noted, when handing over the keys to the Nissan Semi SUV to the traditional rulers in Abuja, that the gift was part of the government's attempts to ease the traditional rulers' mobility.
He said it is the government's job to encourage traditional leaders by providing them with all of the required logistics to allow them to execute their task conscientiously and easily.
“Part of that is mobility. I can’t see how traditional rulers will be boarding taxis or entering public transport. That is unacceptable.
“President Bola Tinubu has directed that that should not be allowed to continue. He has asked that we must do everything possible to make it convenient and easy for you to do your assignment,” he said.
He stated that, in line with Mr Tinubu's revitalised agenda, every stakeholder, including traditional rulers, has a responsibility to play, particularly in the area of security.
You know your communities better than anybody; you know the people within their communities, so you will be able to identify those who look like strangers.
“No agency will perform its function without the support of traditional rulers, and we believe that we must partner together to achieve the fight against insecurity.
“So, today we are going to hand over 10 vehicles to you to please help in supporting the government to fight insecurity in your domain. Be sure that we are going to work together.
“If we don’t work together, we will not achieve results, because everybody is important in the fight against insecurity,” Mr Wike said.
The minister further said that Tinubu has urged the FCTA to make traditional rulers more comfortable by supplementing the meagre payments provided by Area Councils.
"We will soon meet with the chairmen of the Area Councils and the traditional rulers to work out strategies for the welfare package and what role you will play in assisting the government to achieve its renewed agenda," he stated.
"The new agender is that everything has to work.
"The Mandatory Secretaries have been named and sworn in." I'm not interested in hearing any excuses from any department.
"We are not here to make excuses; we were aware of the difficulties before we came here." "It is our responsibility to address these issues," Mr Wike stated.
In response, Adamu Yunusa, the head of the FCT council of traditional rulers, thanked the minister for his assistance and assured the help of traditional rulers to drive FCT forward.
(NAN)