Civil Servants Don’t Like Me’ — Wike Reveals The Reason Behind The Tension

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has said his efforts to curb wasteful spending and block the diversion of public funds have made him unpopular among civil servants.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Wike made the remarks on Thursday during his monthly media briefing in Abuja, where he acknowledged that many public officials within the FCT Administration are dissatisfied with his approach to governance.

According to the former Rivers State governor, he has refused to approve what he considers unnecessary government spending, particularly overseas trips and conferences, choosing instead to channel such funds into infrastructure development.

He argued that public officials should prioritise learning from successful projects within Nigeria rather than embarking on expensive foreign trips.

“We waste our resources on frivolities. You expect me to approve funds for officials to travel to America for a one-week conference on land administration. What is the purpose of that? If they want to learn, they can visit places like Lagos or Port Harcourt, study what works there and compare it with what we have in Abuja,” Wike said.

The minister also disclosed that he restructured the FCT’s budget to prioritise capital projects over recurrent expenditure.

According to him, recurrent spending accounted for about 65 percent of the budget before he assumed office, a trend he reversed by allocating 70 percent of the budget to capital projects and 30 percent to recurrent expenses.

Wike maintained that many conferences have become avenues for the misuse of public funds, insisting that resources previously spent on such activities are now being redirected to road construction and other critical infrastructure projects.

“Some people say they are going for conferences, but I ask, conferences for what? Those are some of the ways government money is diverted. I would rather put those funds into building roads so that the people can see and feel the impact,” he said.

He added that his stance on government spending explains why he is unpopular among many civil servants.

“If you ask civil servants today which minister they don’t like, they will probably mention me because the money they used to spend on conferences is now being invested in roads,” Wike stated.