Vice President Kashima (3rd from right) FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike (3rd left) Minister of State, FCT, Dr Mariya Mahmoud (2nd right), Minister of Petroleum, Heineken Lokpobiri (right), MD Arab contractors, Engr. Mohammed Eladoros, (2nd left) and Chairman, PDP Board of Trustees, Mao Ohuabunwa (left) cutting the tape to commission the newly reconstructed six-lane dual carriageway from the Airport Expressway to Kuje township in the FCT…Thursday.
FAVOUR ISHEMBER, Abuja
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday officially opened the newly finished Federal Highway 105, a six-lane dual carriageway connecting Airport Expressway to Kuje Township in Abuja.
Represented by Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima, Tinubu said his government’s focus is on fixing inherited problems, not walking away from them.
Standing in for the President, Shettima conveyed Tinubu’s words: “I stand before you today with a heart full of gratitude. Indeed, we are not just commissioning a road. We are keeping a promise.”
The President said three years after taking an oath to serve, his administration pledged to end the cycle of stalled projects. “Today, Federal Highway 105 is another proof that we keep our words. Let me be clear: my administration does not inherit problems to abandon them. We inherit challenges to solve them,” he stated.
Tinubu noted the project was first awarded in 2022 but was left untouched, causing headaches for locals and businesses. The route was notorious for gridlock, clouds of dust in dry weather, and flooding when it rained. That frustration pushed him to bring in FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, whom he called a “proven performer” who gets results.
“Where there was delay, we brought political will. Where there were obstructions, we paid compensation because we respect the law and we value progress,” Tinubu said.
He stressed the road means more than concrete and asphalt. It fits into the wider “Renewed Hope Agenda” of spreading development beyond Abuja’s core. “The Renewed Hope Agenda is not for the city centre alone. True democracy must be felt at the grassroots. It must be felt in Kuje. It must be felt by every Nigerian,” he said.
With the new highway, travel time will drop, traffic jams will ease, commerce will pick up, and farmers/businesses will get faster access to markets. “You no longer have to endure the suffocating bottleneck that characterized the Kuje-Airport Road axis before now. Lost man-hours are now being returned to the people. Time is money, and we are putting that time back in your pocket,” he added.
Tinubu also said the road will spur growth in satellite towns, reduce pressure on central Abuja, increase property values, and draw private investors. “Abuja cannot grow if only the city centre works. With this road, we decongest the capital, lift property values, attract investment, and help our farmers move farm produce to market without delay. This is how you build an economy from the bottom up,” he explained.
He then called on residents, developers, and business owners to pay taxes, ground rents, and other levies so government can fund similar projects nationwide. Traditional rulers, community leaders, and Kuje youths were urged to safeguard the asset: “This road is yours. Guard it. Protect the streetlights, the drainage, the walkways. Do not allow vandalism. Do not turn it into an illegal market or refuse dump. Protect what we have built, and it will serve your children for decades.”
Earlier, FCT Minister Nyesom Wike called the project one of the toughest the administration has handled, requiring persistence, talks with stakeholders, and heavy funding. After taking office in 2023, the FCT Administration met with leaders across Abuja’s six area councils, where traditional rulers flagged the road’s terrible state as a top complaint.
“We may not value this road except we know how it was. This is one road that I never dreamt that today we would come and commission. It was a very, very difficult road,” Wike said.
He revealed the contract was awarded on February 4, 2022 for over N54 billion, but work had stopped before Tinubu’s team stepped in. “It became a political road. The Gomo of Kuje and other stakeholders pleaded with us to revive the project. At that time, there was no contractor on site. We made a promise, but in my mind I was asking where the money would come from,” he recalled.
Wike said restoring hope drove them to raise funds and finish the work. The road had become “a death trap” and “a haven for kidnappers and hooligans who harassed residents. Today, that story has changed,” he noted.
He praised Arab Contractors for delivering despite the hurdles and thanked Tinubu for backing infrastructure in outlying areas. “If anybody asks where government is, tell them Airport-Kuje Road is government. Kuje-Gwagwalada Road is government. This is the government providing basic infrastructure to the people,” he declared.
Wike added that Tinubu is slated to return in July to commission the Kuje-Gwagwalada dual carriageway, another key project for the area. “What this administration has done for the satellite towns, history will be on your side. We are changing the direction of development in Abuja,” he said.
FCT Minister of State Dr. Mariya Mahmoud also spoke, calling the opening a milestone under the Renewed Hope Agenda. She said the project shows commitment to better connectivity, economic growth, and improved living standards across the FCT. Mahmoud lauded Wike’s leadership and dedication, and urged residents to back government efforts on development, mobility, and prosperity.
The commissioning was part of events marking Tinubu’s third year in office, with several FCT infrastructure projects being unveiled.
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