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False Allegations Against Nyesom Wike Aimed At Stalling Massive Progress , Says Coalition
The Coalition for Truth and Justice in Nigeria (CTJN) has said recent false allegations against Barrister Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is aimed at stalling the various massive projects going on in the FCT.
The group lauded him for his remarkable achievements in transforming the nation’s capital.
The CTJN said that false accusations against the Minister are aimed to derail the progress and frustrate his efforts.
The group, after an extensive appraisal of Wike’s achievements, said the Minister has proven critics wrong, demonstrating exceptional leadership and vision.
Speaking at a pres conference in Abuja, convener Dr. Agabi Emmanuel said under Wike, infrastructure development has been prioritized, addressing population pressure, urban sprawl, and neglected areas.
Agabi noted that the FCT is being transformed into a useful and aesthetically pleasing capital, with proactive measures addressing housing, transportation, healthcare, and governance infrastructure.
He said Wike’s administration has addressed land grabbing, reclaiming illegally occupied lands for mass housing projects.
The group also said that judges now have befitting accommodations, and rural healthcare has seen significant investments while teacher welfare packages have been improved, and the FCT Civil Service Commission has been established to decentralize governance.
The Coalition recommends continued support from stakeholders, religious and traditional leaders promoting peaceful coexistence, and security agencies maintaining vigilance. Wike’s leadership represents a paradigm shift in governance and infrastructure development, creating a legacy worthy of duplication.
Given the right support, the group said Nigerians and FCT residents can expect improved living standards.
The Coalition commends Wike’s initiatives and encourages other states to replicate them. His achievements demonstrate commitment to equitable development, improved quality of life, and sustainable growth.
“Our findings revealed that the FCT administration under Barrister Neysom Wike indeed prioritized the provision of necessary infrastructures across the various area councils in the federal capital territory. In the past, the FCT has had problems because of population pressure, urban sprawl, and the disregard for important areas,” the statement said.
“Right now, FCT is being transformed into a useful and aesthetically pleasing capital thanks to the proactive measures made by Barrister Wike’s leadership to address these problems. In order to identify priority regions across the many area councils, the administration has used a rigorous approach.
“Undoubtedly, a functional road network is a critical factor to urban development, economic activities, and the general well-being of residents. Recognizing this, it was also observed that the FCT Administration under Barrister Nyesom Wike has undertaken a major renovation of the road network within the Federal Capital City Centre.
“This is evident in the news look of the city centre and other adjourning areas in the federal capital territory. The FCT administration has also commissioned new roads in areas that were neglected by successive administrations in the country. These efforts are not merely about repairing roads but transforming them to meet modern urban standards.
“The FCT administration, led by Barrister Wike, has made large investments in security, which is a fundamental component of any flourishing community. The FCT Administration under the leadership of Barrister Nyesom Wike has also addressed the notorious issue of land grabbing in the FCT.
“The honourable minister went a step further by reclaiming these lands which obviously are not backed with any legal or verifiable documents, and reallocating them for mass housing developmental projects. This is indeed commendable and a step in the right direction in addressing the housing deficit in the FCT while ensuring that land resources are utilized for the public good.
“The FCT administration under Barrister Nyesom Wike recently initiated steps towards providing befitting accommodation for judges. This in our opinion is brilliant and a welcome development in line with standard practices in other climes. It is believed that the members of the law deserve dignified living conditions.
“Supporting the judiciary is a step toward strengthening governance and promoting sustainable development. The Coalition for Truth and Justice in Nigeria recommends this brilliant initiative to other states in the country in our quest for sustainable growth and development.
“It is indeed a statement of the fact that the FCT administration has made substantial investments in improving access to healthcare for rural dwellers within the FCT. This much was recognized by the Coalition for Truth and Justice in the construction of new healthcare centres and the equipping of existing healthcare centres across the FCT. The value of lives and properties have been at the top priority of the working Minister.
“The FCT Administration under the leadership of Barrister Nyesom Wike has substantial improvements in the remuneration and welfare packages for school teachers in the FCT. This, in our opinion, is the manifestation of a premium placed on improving workers’ welfare in the FCT towards achieving a productive workforce to aid in the development of the FCT.
“The FCT Administration in an attempt to decentralize governance in the FCT, established the FCT Civil Service Commission with the appointment of nine permanent secretaries to oversee critical sectors of the FCT.
“The Coalition for Truth and Justice in Nigeria wishes to state in unequivocal terms that the FCT Administration under the leadership of Barrister Nyesom Wike has indeed fared brilliantly in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the present administration.
“Barrister Nyesom Wike’s leadership of the FCT administration represents a paradigm shift in governance and infrastructure development which is unmatchable by no one so far. He has created a legacy of transformation that’s worthy of duplicity by any leader that wishes to make a difference. We commend his initiatives and encourages other states to replicate it”.
…. says this will promote Nigeria value system
Former First Lady of Lagos State, Senator Fatimat Raji-Rasaki has lauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for appointing former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Femi Pedro as an ambassador designate, saying the move will promote Nigeria value system.
Expressing her joy, Sen. Raji-Rasaki said President Tinubu, is branded of appointing reputable individuals to serve in his administration, adding that the crops of the newly screened Ambassadors is a testament of putting a round peg, in a round hole.
Speaking further, she pointed out that Pedro has never shy away from building serious interest of all Lagosians, this she stressed, “Pedro is a technocratic to the core. President Tinubu could not be mistaken in the choice of Femi Pedro as an Ambassador from Lagos State. Born in Lagos, he becomes a voice to reckon with in the politics of Lagos State within a short stint of time.
“His wealth of experience in the banking sector as a leader, entrepreneur and investor came to fruition as he humbly served in the transformation of Lagos State. Pedro was also part of Governor Tinubu’s unprecedented revenue drive which saw Lagos State restructured the entire revenue generating mechanism, the results is the ongoing economic evolution being witnessed in Lagos today.
Raji-Rasaki urged Mr. Pedro and other newly appointed ambassadors, when screened by the Senate and resume duties, to support and as well identify with all Nigerians residing in their various places of assignment to ensure they succeed in their legitimate works and businesses and by extension, contribute to the nation building., “I can only urge you never to relent in creating a conducive environment from Nigeria government for developmental drive of the nation from the Diaspora. Congratulation, I wish you a successful tenure in office.”. Sen. Raji Rasaki prayed.
When people from all walks of life , creed , religion and extraction eulogises your better half , year in year out on his good will to the generality of Nigerians not minding religion , tribe or extraction, it is not out of place to buttress such good omen .
From me , Her Excellency, Hajiya Aisha Ibrahim Idris, the Giwa Matan Lokoja, Omiakele Ogohi onu Anyigba, and the dearest wife to Jakadan Sokoto , His Excellency, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris CON, I count my self lucky to have married not only a husband , but a father to all .
Assessing my dear husband, Jakadan Sokoto, former Kogi Governor , Alhaji Ibrahim Idris CON, he has been bane of my life and our dear children, adorable , compassionate , considerate, promising and above all treat all with human dignity and respect.
Many years after my marriage to His Excellency, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris CON, it has been a success story from one end to the other , just like he has been to ordinary Nigerians that walked into his residence among many others for succour and relief , which they usually got .
Aside family care and concern, I have come to know my husband as friends to all , including people living with disabilities, beggars and the needy in the society .
Aside been two times Governor of Kogi State , employer of labour , His Excellency has positioned himself for many decades as care giver, philantrophist, assessed by many Nigerians looking for assistance one way or the other , which he is never tired of responding.
His accessible and assessible mind and conducts towards people, is without pretences as it is innate even write from his immediate, extended and other extractions which many have testified .
Therefore, penning down this tributes and testimonies for my dear bossom , darling husband is timely and not out place, an opportunity to wish him more years , long life , more wisdom, more opportunities to continue to touch humanity and the society.
For we the immediate family, I remained grateful to Almighty God for given us this opportunity to see the 76th Birthday of His Excellency, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris CON in good health, safe and sound, with his focus on human development.
May Almighty God continues to blossom him all his programs, activities and actions with blessings and happiness particularly his care for the immediate family.
Many Congratulations my dear husband, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris CON, Jakadan Sokoto.
By Paul Mumeh
David Alechenu Bonaventure Mark, a retired Army General and President of the 6th and 7th Senate (2007-2011 & 2011-2015), Federal Republic of Nigeria, is 77 (April 8, 2025). He is unarguably an accomplished soldier and a successful politician.
As a soldier, he rose to the commanding height of his chosen profession; a Brigadier-General and Director of Signals, Nigerian Army and as a politician, he rose to the position of President of the Senate, ranking as number three citizen in Nigeria.
There are very few men and women in Nigeria who arguably fit into the double successful sojourn of Senator David Mark.
Though he is no longer in active politics, he pledged to continue to be a bridge builder across the federation. For him, what makes for peace, unity and progress in Nigeria will always be his mission and purpose.
He has also decided to remain a mentor to the younger generation on leadership, teaching core national values of patriotism, democratic tenets and principles, good governance and the rule of law through the David Mark School of Political Mentorship.
Born on the 8th of April, 1948, in the agrarian Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State of Nigeria, Senator Mark started his elementary education at St. Francis Catholic Practicing School, Otukpo, from 1956 to 1961. He then proceeded to the prestigious Nigerian Military School (NMS), Zaria, from 1962 to 1966 and, in the process, set off to achieve his ambition for a military career. Young David Mark was later admitted into the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) Regular Course 3 and was commissioned Second Lieutenant in 1970.
Senator Mark surged for further professional training in the United Kingdom and India from 1971 to 1976 and bagged a bachelor’s Degree in Telecommunications Engineering from the Military College of Telecommunications Engineering Mhow (India). Between 1978 and 1979, he was a student at the Command and Staff College, Jaji and between 1990 and 1991, he was at the National Defence University in Washington DC and later at Harvard University, Boston, USA from 1991-1992.
During a sterling military career, Senator Mark held various Staff, Command and Administrative appointments in the Nigerian Army. Some of these include but are not limited to Directing Staff, Command and Staff College, Commander Corps of Signals and Faculty Director, National War College (NWC), now National Defence College (NDC), Abuja.
Senator Mark also held extra-curricular appointments while in the military. He was appointed the Chairman of the very challenging Abandoned Properties Implementation Committee in the 1970s. In his capacity as Chairman, he effectively supervised the implementation of the Federal Government White Paper on the controversial abandoned properties in the old Eastern Region, now the South-South (Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo and Rivers) and South Eastern States (Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo).
As a Lieutenant Colonel, he was appointed Military Governor of Niger State in 1984 under General Muhammadu Buhari’s military government. His tenure was characterized by the conceptualization and implementation of brilliant ideas, bold actions and courageous initiatives which set Niger State on the path of development. Pertinent to note, is the introduction of the compulsory girl-child education, an initiative that earned Niger state the Number one position in the promotion of the girl-child education. To date, Niger State has the highest number of Educated females among the 19 Northern States of Nigeria on account of the education policy introduced by Mark.
Appointed Minister of Communications in 1988, Senator Mark set the tone for the modernization of the communications sector in Nigeria by introducing mobile phones and digital telephone systems in the country. He also reorganized NIPOST and started the city coding system. The Nigeria Telecommunications (NITEL) was removed from the Civil Service Structure, and the staff welfare package was improved significantly. He also built two ultra-modern digital earth stations in Lagos and Enugu from internally generated revenue without recourse to Federal Government allocation.
It is pertinent to note that during Mark’s stint as Communications Minister, there was a remarkable revolution in the sector. Mark had sought the permission of then Commander-In-Chief, General Ibrahim Babangida to disconnect subscribers indebted to the NITEL because of the huge debt bedeviling the services. He wanted efficient and sustainable telephone services for the country.
He had warned that those who own lines must pay bills or get disconnected. He kept faith with that promise and debtors had their lines disconnected. His efforts to explain the issue that the telephone is not for charity were misconstrued that “telephone is not for the poor.” No, he wanted a viable NITEL capable of providing good services. But decades later, in the era of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), where subscribers prepay for services, Nigerians would appreciate and give kudos to Mark as a man who saw tomorrow. Who will today make phone calls without a prepaid (credit) cell phone?
Senator Mark’s pet project has been on Education. For him, Education liberates the people and opens doors for prosperity and development. In his quest to give education to his constituents, he awards scholarships to students from post-primary to tertiary institutions. Since 2005 when he floated the scholarship scheme, over 30,000 persons through his “David Mark Scholarship Foundation (DMSF)” have benefited. Most of the beneficiaries were indigents, orphans and people with special needs who may have been denied access to education for no fault of theirs.
For his commitment towards bringing education to the doorstep of his people, Senator Mark built and donated an edifice for the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) study centre in Otukpo, Benue State. He had built and renovated many classroom blocks across the nine local government areas of his Benue South Senatorial District.
While in the Senate, Senator Mark sponsored many bills, the chief of which was an Act for the Establishment of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo (FUHSO). This bill eventually, led to the establishment of the University when President Muhammadu Buhari assented to it. The institution was the first of its kind in Nigeria, and it is turning Otukpo into a medical hub.
He has always believed that the best investment is human capital development. He established Skills Acquisition Centres across the nine local government areas of his constituency to train hundreds of women and youths in various trades. On several occasions, Mark empowered women and youths through the distribution of tools like Cars, Motorcycles, sewing machines, grinding machines, and generator sets, amongst others.
As a sports enthusiast, Mark has empowered many Nigerians through sports. He sponsors an annual Mark D’Ball basketball tournament which has changed the lives of many youths who now reside overseas pursuing their professional careers in the game. In the same vein, he also established the Apa United (Male) and Apa Queens (Female) football clubs. Similarly, trainees at the David Mark International Golf Academy have represented Nigeria in many international competitions. These young lads (fondly called The Lion Cubs) are given intense training by professional golfers and have shown total dominance at all the events they participated.
On infrastructure, Mark influenced the construction of the Loko-Oweto bridge and road network linking Benue, Nasarawa and Abuja. This project is a link between the North and the Southern part of Nigeria.
Mark also influenced the construction of the multi-billion naira Otobi Multi-purpose water dam, which had the twin advantages of providing water and generating electricity to serve the entire Benue South and its neighbouring communities.
Senator Mark also donated several 300KVA Transformers to many communities in all the nine local government areas of Benue South under the Rural Electrification Projects. This, he believed, would facilitate the economic development of the people in the zone.
In communication, Mark built a radio station (Joy FM, 96.5), in Otukpo, Benue State. A platform for education, entertainment and information dissemination to the people. This Radio station remains the first privately owned radio station in the North Central Region of Nigeria.
Other infrastructure includes but is not limited to an 18-hole International Golf Course in Otukpo, donated free of charge to the community, the International Standard Football Stadium (under construction) in Akpegede, Otukpo; Establishment of numerous Primary Healthcare Centres and Clinics; construction of roads and solar street lights.
During his stint as chairman of the National Assembly, he influenced the construction of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) complex in Abuja, designed for institutional capacity building for legislators and their aides in the country. This infrastructure is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, which include ICT Centres, libraries, recreational Centres, clinics, lecture halls and a one-thousand-capacity event centre.
“Mr Stability” was his appellation while he was leading the National Assembly. This was orchestrated by his stewardship and team spirit towards his colleagues and his ability to arrest pressing challenges to stabilize the polity.
Under his watch, the National Assembly broke the jinx by amending the 1999 constitution of Nigeria, which has set the pace for the growth and development of our democracy.
A visionary and purposeful Mark, along with his colleagues, set the pace for the establishment of the Amnesty Programme and the creation of the Ministry of Niger Delta through the Senate retreat held in Port Harcourt back in 2007. This event was a deft legislative masterstroke where Mark provided the solution to a complex national problem.
The invocation of the “Doctrine of Necessity” by the National Assembly under the chairmanship of Mark in February 2010 led to the swearing-in of the then Vice President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan as Acting President of Nigeria. This singular act earned Mark a place of honour in the Hall of Fame amongst Nigeria’s greats.
Reflecting on the journey so far, Mark affirmed that he has been exceptionally favoured by God and will continue to serve God and humanity in the years ahead. Nigeria he said, has been fair to him, submitting that in or out of Government, he will continue to serve his fatherland.
In 2019 when he finally took a bow from the upper legislative chamber of the National Assembly (after 20 years) just like King David in the Holy Bible, he built an edifice for St. Augustine’s Catholic Church, Otukpo, Benue State and dedicated it to the Almighty God in appreciation to God for his accomplishments in life.
Mark’s place as a patriot, true nationalist, detribalized Nigerian, social and political strategist of no mean standing is unarguably assured in the annals of Nigerian history.
And Mark, statesman per excellence, marches on @ 77 today.
Happy birthday to the Author of Doctrine of Necessity.
*Mumeh writes from Abuja.