FCT: Some judges still tenants, we’ll solve accommodation problems before 2027 – Wike

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, on Tuesday said 80 percent of judges’ accommodation problems would be solved before the end of President Bola Tinubu’s first tenure.

Wike gave the assurance while lamenting that some judges still live in rented accommodations and are at the mercy of their landlords.

Speaking during the official flag-off of the construction of Magistrate Court Jabi in Abuja, the Minister decried the poor welfare of judges in the capital city.

He said the president is determined to provide an enabling environment for judges to facilitate the quick dispensation of justice.

Wike said: “My lord has been able to read out what the FCT Administration has been doing as regards the Justice sector. All we are doing regarding initiatives of Mr President must be executed or implemented by us.

“Mr President has always believed that you cannot have a total dispensation of Justice when the enabling environment just like when he came to Port Harcourt in 2023, before his celebration, by that time he was present-elect, he came and inaugurated the mindset complexes.

“He said we can’t talk about fighting corruption when you don’t provide an enabling environment for the judges and magistrates, when you don’t provide welfare for them, it will be very difficult.

“I have been going around and sometimes when I see where our judges and magistrates sit, it’s very embarrassing and then you still want them to deliver justices quickly. You need to provide a good learning environment, good offices, and good courts for them to be able to do that.

“Sometimes you see our justices are living as tenants and sometimes when they are not able to pay on time, they are at the mercy of the landlords. The landlord can use their cars to block the gates – you have not paid us – that can be embarrassing.

“Even where you are living, you don’t even know where criminals are, sometimes you are leaving with those criminals around, so how do you know, so how do you want to guarantee your life?

“Mr President has said that has to come to a stop and let me assure you that before the end of the first tenure of Mr President, we would have solved 80 percent of your accommodation problems in terms of housing.”

Wike also promised that 20 units of four bedroom duplexes would be handed over to the Federal High Court in June 2026 and during Tinubu’s third 30 units would also be given to the FCT High Court.

He added: “By the end of this year, we are going to handover 20 units of duplexes of four bedroom flat to the Federal High Court and by June next year, during the third anniversary of Mr President, we are also handing over 30 duplexes to the FCT High Court

“It’s not just here, if you are going to the Villa where you have the fire service station, there is another project ongoing there and then in Garki, so that it would accommodate a lot of our magistrates and they would be able to carry out their jobs the way they should.”

The Minister further disclosed that the Federal Capital Development Authority, FCDA, is responsible for the building of public buildings in Abuja.

“It’s important that so many people would have criticized the government for providing accommodations and offices for the Judiciary.

“Let me say this clearly that FCDA is primarily concerned about public buildings in Abuja, most public buildings are built by the Federal Capital Development Authority. Be it INEC, Supreme Court you are seeing from here is also done by the FCDA,” he added.