FCT: Wike approves resumption of work on abandoned Utako General Hospital, orders upgrade of others

The 19th Federal Capital Territory Executive Committee, FCT EXCO, meeting, presided over by the Honourable Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, alongside the Minister of State, Mariya Mahmoud, has approved the immediate resumption of work on the abandoned Utako General Hospital in Abuja.

The Mandate Secretary for Health Services and Environment Secretariat (HSES), Dr Adedolapo Fasawe, made the revelation while briefing journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, on the outcome of the FCT EXCO meeting regarding the health sector.

Dr Fasawe said work on the long-abandoned Utako General Hospital project would resume immediately, with approved plans covering its complete construction, equipping and staffing.

While also highlighting other major outcomes of the EXCO regarding the health sector, the Health Secretary said the EXCO had also approved the immediate award of contracts for the full renovation, rehabilitation and modern re-equipping of all FCT general hospitals.

According to her, “I am happy to say that the Minister has ordered the immediate award of renovation and rehabilitation of all the general hospitals in the FCT. And this is to include procurement of new equipment, X-ray machines, diagnostic materials, even all the way to the theatre. Also, the Utako General Hospital which has long been abandoned, he has also ordered for work to start on building, constructing, equipping, and staffing the Utako General Hospital”.

The Health Secretary said this would go a long way in making healthcare of the right quality available to the citizens of the FCT.

“So, what then happens now is that when the hospitals are upgraded, the equipment is there, and the personnel are there, then quality, affordable, and accessible healthcare would be available for the people of the FCT”, Dr Fasawe stressed.

Director of the Security Department, Adamu Gwary, also detailed significant approvals by the EXCO designed to bolster safety across rural and satellite communities in the FCT and bring police infrastructure directly to local doorsteps. He said the EXCO approved a fresh six-month contract for security infrastructure at the newly established Wasa informal sector, including a dedicated police station serving the wider area.

Gwary said the initiative was aimed at complementing ongoing progress on the Minister’s pledge to construct two fully furnished Divisional Police Headquarters with six-man staff quarters in each of the six Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory.

He noted that completed stations in Ushafa and Saburi had already been delivered to the administration, with several others reaching advanced stages of completion to proactively combat rural crime.

In a landmark decision for judicial efficiency, the General Counsel, FCT, Salman Dako, revealed that the FCT EXCO had approved a contract for the comprehensive digital transformation of the FCT High Court system within a two-week period.

Dako disclosed that the project would introduce electronic court recording and automated case management systems to the 67 courtrooms across various judicial divisions in the FCT, adding that the transition would move the territory away from manual documentation and handwritten proceedings towards efficient electronic filings, resolving historical record-keeping challenges and bringing FCT courts in line with global best practices.

In basic and secondary education, Education Secretary Danlami Hayyo confirmed FCT EXCO approvals for the procurement of examination materials across primary, junior secondary and senior secondary schools.

He said the move was to ensure hitch-free examination processes in FCT public schools, which had experienced an influx of students migrating from private institutions, following extensive school renovations and classroom modernisations across the territory.

Addressing past academic disruptions, the Education Secretary said the administration had actively stabilised teachers’ welfare by funding 40 per cent of Area Council teachers’ arrears entitlement and providing an ongoing N2 billion monthly intervention fund to ensure industrial harmony and improved learning outcomes.

Infrastructure and power supply in satellite communities also received major support. The Coordinator of the Satellite Towns Development Department, Abdulkadir Zulkiflu, announced a N5.3 billion contract awarded to Messrs CGC Nigeria Limited for an eight-month construction of a 33 KVA power supply line from Dawakinchi to Tokulo and neighbouring villages in Bwari.

Additionally, the EXCO formally ratified two successfully completed and commissioned 12-month projects executed by Messrs Setraco Nigeria Limited: the Gaba/Tokulo Road, featuring a two-span river bridge in Bwari, and the N8.8 billion Paikon Kore/Ibwa Road rehabilitation in Gwagwalada.

Director of Land Administration, Chijioke Nwankwoeze, while outlining that the modernisation efforts and safeguards were similarly extended to land administration, said approvals were made by the EXCO for the award of contracts for the purchase of utility vehicles, a hardware and data centre overhaul for integrated ICT operations, and a specialised contract with the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company to print revenue receipts embedded with advanced security features to eliminate fraud.

Meanwhile, the Overseeing Coordinator, AMMC, Mary Amina Ahmadu, confirmed that the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council received approval for six environmental memos focusing on solid waste collection, waterway desilting to prevent flooding, common waste dump maintenance and modular hybrid solar street lighting.

Ensuring public health at its source, Acting GM of the FCT Water Board, Mrs Chinyere Elechi Arayi, confirmed approved contracts for high-tech hypochlorite (HTH) powdered chlorine for water treatment to prevent waterborne diseases, alongside renewed comprehensive insurance coverage for the Lower Usuma Dam treatment plant.

Concluding the briefing, the Chief of Staff commended members of the press for their ongoing partnership and coverage. He emphasised that the Minister’s aggressive development drive was purposefully balancing attention between the city centre and long-neglected satellite towns, ensuring that the benefits of governance reached every corner of the Federal Capital Territory.