‘We Have Taste,’ Wike Defends N39bn Int’l Conference Centre Renovation Budget
Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, has defended the N39 billion used to renovate the International Conference Centre, ICC, which was built in 1991 at the cost of N240 million.
According to Wike, besides the inflationary realities, there was the need to show taste.
The FCT Minister said this during the commissioning of the newly-constructed 15-kilometre Left-Hand Service Carriageway of Outer Southern Expressway, OSEX, Stage II, from Ring Road 1 Junction to Wasa Junction.
“What was the exchange rate in 1991?” he queried.
“Compare the exchange rate to what we have in 2025.
“We have taste, we want the best for the country, and the president has given the best for the country.
“If you did not do well to defend your boss when you had the opportunity, it is your business. I am here, and I will defend my boss.
“I have done it and I have no regret at all,” he said even as he censured those who felt the project was a misplaced priority.
Bola Tinubu International Conference Centre
On Tuesday, June 10, President Bola Tinubu inaugurated the refurbished ICC, which the FCT minister renamed after him as the Bola Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja.
It was the gale of criticism that followed the renaming and budget Wike reacted to today, Friday.
Wike said those criticising the amount of money spent on the rehabilitation of the ICC “don’t have good taste”.
“The only thing in that International Conference Centre that was not changed was the block work.
“Everything in that Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre was changed,” the FCT minister said in a direct response to his critics.
