Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, has commended the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, for the pace of infrastructure development in Abuja, saying even his critics would acknowledge the changes.

Lokpobiri made the remarks on Tuesday after joining Wike on an inspection of ongoing road and bridge projects in the FCT, including the ISEX 2 road, Southern Parkway and S1 road around the Fire Station in Gaduwa.

The minister described the scale of infrastructure development in Abuja over the past three years as unprecedented, noting that he had not witnessed a similar level of project execution since moving to the capital in 2007.

“I have lived in Abuja for about 19 years, but I have never seen projects flagged off in July reach this level of completion within such a short time,” he said.

Lokpobiri added that the projects would benefit residents regardless of their political views or personal opinions about the FCT minister.

He said he was particularly surprised by the progress of some projects despite living about two kilometres from one of the bridges near the National Assembly quarters in Apo.

The minister said he only became aware of the extent of the ongoing work after joining Wike for the inspection.

He urged Nigerians to recognise leaders who deliver on their responsibilities, regardless of personal differences, adding that the ongoing projects were changing Abuja’s infrastructure landscape.