Former Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, has said President Bola Tinubu is looking beyond party affiliation by appointing Barr. Nyesom Wike, a member of the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as Minister of the FCT, describing it as a strategic partnership.

Ortom disclosed this to newsmen after accompanying the FCT Minister on an inspection tour of the new bus terminal projects scheduled for commissioning to mark President Bola Tinubu’s second anniversary in office.

He said Wike’s performance had not only exceeded expectations but had fundamentally altered the face of the city, which he described as monumental development in Abuja. He declared the current transformation of Nigeria’s capital as unprecedented in the history of the territory.

Ortom, who served as Minister of State for Trade and Investment and is a longstanding figure within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), described the pace of development in Abuja under Wike as so rapid that the city had become unfamiliar to him.

He said: “Mr President is looking beyond party affiliation. That is why he brought my friend and leader, Minister Nyesom Wike, to be Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, despite the fact that he won the election on the platform of the APC. This is a strategic partnership, and all of us must recognise that, because if we don’t have a country, we cannot in any way have a nation or hold a position.

“Mr President is looking beyond party affiliation. If he were partisan, he would not have brought my friend in. But he chose competence. That is what leadership is about—bringing in people who can add value, irrespective of political lines.

“I’ve been in politics since 1982, I’ve seen several Ministers of the FCT, but this is the first time I’m seeing this level of progress and monumental development. I am very proud, very happy, and thankful to God for giving my friend and colleague the capacity to do all that he’s doing in the Federal Capital Territory.

“Honestly, I can tell you now, in the last year, I need a guide to take me around the FCT,” he said. “That is how much things have changed. These terminals—this is what we’ve seen abroad for decades. We are finally seeing them here, in our own capital.”

Ortom urged Nigerians to look beyond political differences and support the current administration’s reform agenda, particularly as it relates to security and the economy.

“Yes, we have challenges as a country, and the President himself has acknowledged that,” he noted. “But we need to work together to overcome them. Let’s put 2027 aside. This is not the time for distractions. Let us focus on building the nation.”

He said Tinubu assumed leadership at a difficult time in Nigeria’s history but has shown the political will to move the country forward. “We must commend him for his renewed hope agenda. From what I have seen in Abuja alone, the results are beginning to show.”

Expressing personal pride in Wike’s performance, Ortom added: “Even though we do not hold any appointment, we feel grateful to God for making our friend Minister. He has not disappointed us. He has covered all areas, and he is making us proud.” (Nigerian Tribune)

•From left, former Governor of Abia State, Ikezie Ikpeazu, FCT minister, Nyesom Wike and former Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom.