By Daniel Tyokua
The minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Malam Muhammad Bello, has urged the residents to ensure a peaceful general election as the country enters New Year.
He made the appeal in a New Year message to the residents, yesterday.
In a statement issued by the Director Press, Anthony Ogunleye, Bello begged the residents to always cooperate and support the administration in its task of removing illegal structures and settlements within the city for security reasons and maintain the sanctity of the Abuja Master plan.
Bello said 2023 holds an important place in the democratic development of the country, and the residents must take It serious.
“I wish to applaud residents of the territory for your exemplary conduct not only in our collective quest of building a befitting capital Territory for our country, but also for holding true to the principles of unity and peaceful co-existence which is the foundation on which the FCT is grounded.
“Exactly a year ago, in my 2022 New Year message, I enjoined residents of the Territory to participate actively in the Area Council elections. I once more commend you all for abiding by the democratic and lawful processes in the election of the council chairmen.
“Once again, I call on all of us, in the same spirit of peace, unity and togetherness, to participate in the 2023 general elections coming up next month.
“As residents of the FCT, we are obliged to live up to the ideals of the founding fathers of the Territory as a place where every Nigerian can call home. We must therefore, collectively resist any attempt to cause disharmony and disaffection within our ranks. Elections in the FCT have always been peaceful. Let us ensure that the upcoming 2023 polls also reflect this.
“In the preceding year, the FCT Administration consolidated on its efforts of providing world class infrastructure for the Territory with efforts to complete on-going projects and investing heavily in the maintenance and upgrading of existing ones.
“It is to our credit that despite the heavy rainfalls and attendant floods that devastated several parts of the country, we were largely spared this misfortune. This is because, having learnt from our experiences in the past, adequate measures were taken to prevent any such re-occurrence.
“we solicit your cooperation and support, as we continue the task of removing illegal structures and settlements within our city both for security purposes and maintaining the sanctity of the Abuja Masterplan.
“It must be understood that these corrective measures are absolutely essential if truly our city is to evolve into one of the most aesthetically pleasing and functional cities in the world. The presence of illegal settlements and shanties will only draw us further away from attaining this goal.
“we are confronted daily with the unwholesome and unpatriotic activities of vandals who wantonly destroy or steal public infrastructure installed by government at great cost. Replacing or repairing these critical infrastructure cost a lot of money which otherwise would have been invested in other equally essential projects.
“You are therefore enjoined to treat critical public infrastructure as you would treat your personal property and help to protect all public assets located within your vicinity”
