Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
President Bola Tinubu has strongly defended his administration's decision to remove the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) from the Treasury Single Account (TSA), declaring that the policy has eliminated bureaucratic bottlenecks, unlocked the financial flexibility needed to fast-track critical infrastructure, and produced measurable results that have vindicated the move. Speaking on Monday, 6 July 2026, while commissioning the new Office Annex of the Body of Benchers and 10 units of four-bedroom staff quarters at the Nigerian Law School in Bwari, Abuja, the President addressed skeptics who had questioned the wisdom of the decision when it was first implemented in October 2023.
"When we pulled the FCT Administration out of the Treasury Single Account (TSA), there were skeptics. There were those who questioned the wisdom of that financial liberation. But we did it because we knew that local administration must have the liquidity, the speed and the corporate flexibility to interface with financial institutions and deliver critical projects without bureaucratic strangulation. Today, the results are glaring," Tinubu said. The President, who was represented at the event by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, credited the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, with translating the policy into tangible projects and driving the unprecedented infrastructure renewal across the nation's capital.
The decision to exempt the FCTA from the TSA was approved by President Tinubu in October 2023 following a request by Minister Wike, who had argued that the policy was constraining the administration's ability to fund infrastructure projects and access credit facilities. The approval granted the FCTA greater financial autonomy to deploy its internally generated revenue towards development, a move that critics had initially questioned but which the President now says has been justified by the scale of transformation witnessed across Abuja. Tinubu noted that the ongoing transformation of the nation's capital has vindicated the decision, crediting Wike with delivering on the mandate to modernise Abuja.
The President praised Wike for extending the FCTA's infrastructure drive beyond road construction to strengthening key public institutions, citing the minister's intervention in resolving a long-standing land ownership issue affecting the Nigerian Law School. According to Tinubu, Wike discovered that the premier institution had operated for years in Bwari without a formal title and moved swiftly to correct the anomaly by waiving the Certificate of Occupancy processing fees and demanding its issuance within one week. "When I appointed Minister Wike, I gave him a clear mandate to transform Abuja into a modern, functional and world-class capital city. Over the last three years, the scale of infrastructural development, urban renewal and project delivery in the FCT has been unmatched," Tinubu said.
President Tinubu also addressed concerns that the Executive's investment in judicial infrastructure could be interpreted as an encroachment on the independence of the judiciary, insisting that such interventions are consistent with the constitutional responsibilities of government. "Let me be absolutely clear: the provision of infrastructure for the legal community and the judiciary is not an interference in the independence of another arm of government. Rather, it is a constitutional and collaborative duty of the Executive to ensure that those who interpret and uphold our laws are provided with an environment that fosters operational efficiency and excellence," the President said. He described the newly commissioned Body of Benchers Office Annex as a symbol of his administration's commitment to the rule of law, institutional independence and democratic governance.
Speaking on the Federal Government's commitment to legal education, Tinubu described the newly commissioned staff quarters as the first phase of broader efforts to improve facilities at the Nigerian Law School. He disclosed that work is also underway on a new auditorium, additional student hostels and the digitisation of the institution's academic and administrative systems, mirroring the technological leap already being executed within the FCT High Courts. "We cannot build a world-class legal system with dilapidated infrastructure. This is why, concurrently, we have constructed the Abuja division of the Court of Appeal, we are building Magistrate courts across the FCT and constructing a state-of-the-art residential quarter for our judges in the heart of the city—to safeguard their security, protect their autonomy, and guarantee their comfort," Tinubu said.
The President's remarks come nearly three years after his administration removed the FCTA from the Treasury Single Account, a financial management policy introduced in 2015 that requires ministries, departments and agencies to remit their revenues into a single government account to promote transparency and accountability. The decision has remained a subject of debate, with some critics arguing that the exemption could weaken fiscal discipline and oversight. However, Tinubu maintained that the administration acted to eliminate bureaucratic bottlenecks and improve project delivery, and that the visible transformation across the Federal Capital Territory has vindicated the policy. At the commissioning of the Body of Benchers' Office Annex in Abuja's Institution and Research District, the President struck a similar note, describing the project as an affirmation of his administration's commitment to the rule of law and institutional independence. "It is with profound honour and a great sense of national purpose that I stand before you today to officially commission this state-of-the-art Office Annex for the Body of Benchers," he said.
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