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The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has defended the appointment of Richard Dauda as the acting Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA).
Speaking on Friday while inaugurating roads to the Renewed Hope cities and estates in the Karsana West area of Abuja, Wike argued for the appointment of career civil servants to strategic government positions. According to him, political appointees often undermine effective service delivery due to external influence and patronage.
Wike said appointing a serving civil servant as the acting Executive Secretary of the FCDA has contributed to improved performance at the agency.
He explained that the acting Executive Secretary was chosen because he rose through the ranks as the agency’s Director of Engineering and understands the demands of the job.
“I was discussing with the Senate President. He asked me, ‘Why acting?’ I said he’s acting because he’s a civil servant. He was the Director of Engineering,” Wike said.
According to the minister, appointing a politician to the position would have introduced unnecessary distractions and political interference.
“If we name a politician now, he will begin to disrupt the job that we are doing. He will begin to talk about somebody who recommended him for the appointment,” he said.
Wike added that career civil servants are more accountable because they understand the consequences of failing to perform.
“The Director of Engineering knows the risk if he refuses to obey me. He knows. But if it’s a politician, probably the Senate President recommended him to Mr. President. He will not say that I’m his boss. Then I will be quarrelling every day, and the job will not be done.”
“Sometimes, I’m not saying that political appointment is not good, but sometimes people do not draw the line to see that it affects performance. It does. It affects performance,” he said.
The FCT minister also defended President Bola Tinubu’s infrastructure drive in Abuja, particularly in the satellite towns, saying residents had never witnessed the level of development currently being delivered.
“Let anybody come out to say whether the satellite towns have known governance before or whether they have seen the impact of government before. Nobody knew about these districts. But today, see where we are. It is about the provision of infrastructure,” Wike said.
