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Renewed Hope Youth Empowerment Programme : Wike Distributes 80 Vehicles To FCT Youths
Wike flagged off FCT Renewed Hope Youth Empowerment Programme with the distribution of 80 brand new vehicles.
He said the vehicles would provide employment opportunities for the youth and also reduce the cost of transportation in the FCT.
The FCT Minister noted that the vehicles were being provided by the government at no cost to the beneficiaries.
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, on Thursday October 31, 2024 flagged off the FCT Renewed Hope Youth Empowerment Programme with the distribution of 80 brand new vehicles to the youths in the FCT.
Speaking during the flag-off exercise, Wike stressed the Federal Government’s commitment to improving the lives of FCT youth through the Renewed Hope Youth Empowerment Initiative.
He said the vehicles, which consists of 30 SUVs, 30 7-seater Suzuki Minibuses, and 20 14-seater Hiace buses, would provide employment opportunities for the youth and also reduce the cost of transportation in the FCT.
The Minister added that the vehicles were being provided by the government at no cost to the beneficiaries from across the six Area Councils of the FCT to give them a source of livelihood and urged the beneficiaries to utilise it for the purpose which they had been provided.
The FCT Minister said :
“These are brand new vehicles, and they are not paying a dime. We are not saying pay the government any money. The government is saying this is our own support to make sure you have something to feed, to make sure you can support your family, and also to reduce the cost of transportation in the city.”
Wike also disclosed that the vehicles would be used as a pilot scheme to gradually phase out tricycle operations in parts of the Abuja city centre, adding that more vehicles would also be procured to address possible shortages.
He said :
“I’m not saying there will be no more Keke. No, you will go to certain areas. But for now, we will try to see the pilot scheme in Maitama, Guzape and Asokoro. Let us see how it will work, and by the grace, it will work well because Mr. President means well for everybody”.
Noting that some of the tricycle and taxi operators in Abuja were informants to criminals, the Minister also disclosed plans to conduct security profiling of commercial buses and taxi operators within the FCT, adding that they must also operate with the Abuja taxi colour.
He said :
“From January next year, nobody will operate as a taxi driver or a bus driver without approval from the security, without security profiling you, and without the Abuja colour. So, there is nothing like using any vehicle on the road. From January, we will not allow that. We would have also brought in more vehicles so that we won’t have a shortage.”
At the event, Wike thanked President Tinubu for his overwhelming support for the FCT Administration, saying all requests from the FCTA to the President have been approved and called on the youths to support the President and desist from any mischief.
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