The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has officially renamed the Abuja International Conference Centre to the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in honour of President Tinubu’s leadership and contribution to the development of the Federal Capital Territory.
Speaking at the formal inauguration of the refurbished conference centre in Abuja on Tuesday, Wike explained that the decision was a reflection of Tinubu’s influence in the completion and modernization of the facility which, according to the minister, had seen no significant upgrade since it was first constructed in 1991.
“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,” Wike declared.
He attributed the successful completion of the massive rehabilitation project to President Tinubu’s style of leadership and support, adding that the transformation achieved within a short time was a direct result of the President’s influence.
“Within eight months Mr President, this is what we have. And I agree that without your leadership, it wouldn’t have been possible,” the Minister said.
Aside from the main facility being renamed after Tinubu, Wike also revealed that other key halls within the complex have been dedicated to top government officials representing the three arms of government. According to him, these names were chosen in recognition of their cooperation and contributions to the progress of the FCT.
“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,” he said.
“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,” Wike further explained.
He emphasized that while these halls carry individual names, they remain parts of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre as a collective facility. “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,” he said.
In a further move to maintain the upgraded facility and ensure its sustainability, Wike announced a new policy requiring all users, including government ministries and agencies, to pay for the use of the centre.
“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 insisted.
