By Kolawole Ojebisi
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has explained why he renamed the renovated Abuja International Conference Centre as the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre.
Wike stated that Conference Centre, which was built during the regime of the former Military President, Ibrahim Babangida in 1991, had fallen into disrepair until the Tinubu administration assumed office and ordered its rehabilitation.
The minister ascribed the completion of the rehabilitated conference centre to the leadership of President Tinubu, stating, “Within eight months Mr President, this is what we have. And I agree that without your leadership, it wouldn’t have been possible.”
Wike also disclosed that other halls in the facility had been renamed after Vice President Kashim Shettima, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, House of Representatives Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas, and Chief Justice of Nigeria, Kekere-Ekun.
Wike stated this during the Inauguration of the ICC in Abuja on Tuesday.
He stressed that the decision was informed by the significant roles played by the three arms of government towards ensuring the project came to fruition.
Wike said, “Today, this Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre can stand any other International Conference Centre. And in doing that, because the National Assembly has also supported us, I have told you that as we were inspecting the project, at the back, we have two halls. We have to remember those who have also supported the FCT. The National Assembly is one such arm of government.
“So we have named one hall Tajudeen Abbas hall, we have named Godswill Akpabio hall, and your Vice President, we have named one of these halls after the Vice President, and then the CJN, we have also named one of the halls after the CJN. And these are the three arms of the government, working together.
“So I just said since it is a property under you, and the building is under you, then, it should have small names on those halls, but it should be under the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre,”
“It is important for the public to understand and to know why today, this is called the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre. This Conference Centre was built in 1991 under the military government. Since that time, nothing has happened to this International Conference Centre” he added.
The Minister also stated that any ministries or government agencies willing to use the Conference Centre will be made to pay going forward, to ensure the proper maintenance of the ICC.
“How do we sustain this? I want to let everybody know, whether you’re a Ministry, whether you’re an agency, you want to use this, you have to pay something. That’s the only way it can be sustained. Nothing like my brother, my sister is going to have a wedding. If you want to use a place like this, such a beautiful place, then you must drop something,” he said.
