By Charles Olewezi
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Tuesday, identified infrastructural development as the major channel to economic growth.
Tinubu added that massive infrastructural development that is ongoing by his administration in Nigeria is creating a brighter future, economic growth, creating jobs, and unlock the potential of a city.
Tinubu stated this at the first day of commissioning of completed projects in Abuja.
He said when you provide infrastructure, it would cut across all sphere of life and also make life easier for everyone.
Tinubu who was represented by the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, at the commissioning of the main carriageways of the Outer Southern Expressway, from the Ring Road 1 Junction to the Ring Road 2, said the road was inherited and the first part had already been commissioned in 2024.
According to President Tinubu, “We inherited this journey of the Outer Southern Expressway. Right here in June 2024, we commissioned the first stage from the Villa Roundabout all the way to the Ring Road 1 Junction, complete with its interchanges. By last year, 2025, we stood here again to open up the 15-kilometer left-hand service carriageway.
”We are paving the way for a brighter future. Look around you. Infrastructure is the very artery of economic growth. If you want to unlock the potential of a city, if you want to create jobs, if you want to make life easier for the market woman, the corporate worker, and the industrialist—you build roads”.
Tinubu assured that the era of uncompleted projects in Nigeria is fading away.
“We finish what we started,” he said.
Tinubu also commended the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike and his entire team for their commitment and dogged determination in reshaping the FCT for long term prosperity.
FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, in his address commended the contractors for keeping to their promise and delivering the job promptly.
Wike said “Excellency, it may interest you to know that this is where we have Apo Mechanic Village. So many governments have made promises to the informal sector that they will move them out to a more comfortable area in order to decongest this road. All those have been empty promises. I’m sure those of them who carry out businesses in that village will today confirm that the promise Mr. President made to them when he started inaugurating project in his first tenure anniversary, he has done it.
”We did say every project we inherited, we are going to continue with it and finish it. That’s the essence of leadership. One of the criteria of good leadership is that there must be political continuity, continuity of projects initiated by other administrations, not just projects initiated by you. And this administration has shown, and I can tell you, since 2023 that Mr. President inaugurated us as ministers, want to be conservative. At least 80% of projects that we have completed are projects initiated by various administrations. That is leadership”.
The FCT Minister lamented, “When I hear people say, nothing is happening in this country. And I begin to say, will we also say, those of them who are living in Abuja, those of them who are doing business in Apo Mechanic village, will you also say, that in truth, that nothing is happening in Abuja? Can you say that?”.
In her remarks, the FCT Minister of State, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud, expressed profound appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for his visionary leadership and unwavering commitment to infrastructure development, describing the official commissioning of the two main carriageways of the Outer Southern Expressway (OSEX) as another landmark achievement under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
She also affirmed that the project represents a significant milestone in the ongoing transformation of the Federal Capital Territory and a testament to the President’s determination to deliver purposeful governance through impactful infrastructure.
The Minister of State noted that President Tinubu’s administration has continued to translate aspirations into tangible achievements, with strategic investments in roads, bridges, and other critical infrastructure that are opening new pathways to economic prosperity, social integration, and national development.
She also commended the Minister of the FCT, Barrister Nyesom Ezenwo Wike,, for his exceptional leadership, resilience, and unwavering commitment to delivering world-class infrastructure projects that are redefining the landscape of Abuja and improving the quality of life of residents.
Mahmoud described the OSEX project as a strategic investment that would enhance connectivity, stimulate economic activities, ease transportation, and support the sustainable growth of the nation’s capital.