Tinubu Commissions 9km Airport Expressway-Kuje Dual Carriageway
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, has officially commissioned the newly dualized 9km section of FCT Highway 105 (Kuje Road), stressing that the six-lane dual carriageway will provide dignified connectivity between the city centre and suburbs and decongest the Abuja metropolis.
Speaking on Thursday, June 11, 2026, at the commissioning ceremony of the vital artery with two river bridges stretching from the Airport Expressway to Kuje town Junction, President Tinubu, who was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, described the project as a physical manifestation of a promise kept on the third anniversary of his administration.
He noted that the project, which was initially awarded in 2022 but abandoned, had long served as a bottleneck that wasted productive hours for civil servants, traders, and commuters, adding that its construction will return valuable time to residents, lift property values, attract commercial investments, and enable local farmers to move their produce efficiently without delay.
He said, “This six-lane dual carriageway we are commissioning today completely changes the game. You no longer have to endure the suffocating bottleneck on the Kuje-Airport Road. This is your bypass to freedom and fluid movement. We are giving you back your time. The hours our mothers, our traders, and our civil servants used to waste in traffic traps entering or leaving Kuje are gone. Time is money, and we are putting that time back into your pockets”.
Reaffirming his commitment to balanced development across the territory, President Tinubu expressed confidence that connecting the suburbs through premium infrastructure would successfully decongest the Abuja metropolis while bringing the real benefits of governance straight to the grassroots level.
He said, “Above all, we are opening up the satellite towns. Abuja cannot breathe if only the city center is developed. By creating a high-speed, dignified connection between the suburbs and the heart of the capital, we are decongesting our metropolis and spreading prosperity evenly”.
He praised the FCT Minister, Barr. Ezenwo Nyesom Wike for his aggressive political will in ensuring the execution of the project, and further commended him for paying the necessary compensation to affected citizens along the road corridor to clear obstructions and ensure the timely delivery of the road project.
President Tinubu, while also reminding residents that infrastructure development is a partnership, reiterated his call for property owners and developers to pay their taxes, ground rents, and land fees to enable the replication of the Kuje success story in other satellite towns. He strongly urged traditional rulers and the youth of Kuje to jealously guard the new infrastructure against vandalism, unauthorized markets, and refuse dumping.
Earlier in his remarks, the FCT Minister, Barrister Nyesom Wike, recalled the difficult and highly politicized history of the highway, stressing that the 9km road project, which was awarded in February, 2022 at a cost of over ₦54 billion, had no contractor on-site and was completely abandoned when the current administration took office.
He explained that during his initial security-assessment visits across the six Area Councils, the traditional rulers, led by the Gomo of Kuje, explicitly pleaded for the reactivation of the road, as well as the dualization of the impassable garage junction to LEA Secretariat Road, which he described as a death trap at the time.
Despite funding challenges, the Minister noted that the FCT Administration successfully completed the six-lane dual carriageway connecting Kuje directly to the city centre, as well as the 4.5-kilometer stretch from Garage Junction to LEA Secretariat Road, thereby reducing a former long commute to just minutes.
Barr. Wike equally disclosed that work was progressing rapidly on the dualization of the Kuje to Gwagwalada road, which he said had been a nightmare for Kuje residents, adding that the President will also return shortly to commission the first stage of the road project.
He said that with the successful completion of these vital road projects, the current administration of President Tinubu has restored the hope lost by residents of the FCT and the people of Kuje in particular.
“If you were coming from Gwagwalada to Kuje, you had to stop somewhere; the road was not in existence. It was a death trap. It was a haven for kidnappers and hooligans trying to molest and harass citizens. The people of Kuje had lost all hope. But with the President coming into power, the lost hope has been given back to them”, the Minister stated.
Barr. Wike, who also used the occasion to challenge critics of the current administration to see the physical transformation of the territory as undeniable proof of governance, added that timely payment of ground rent will allow the FCT Administration to extend the highway further to connect with Nasarawa State.
The Minister also announced that the newly elected Chairmen of FCT Area Councils would be sworn in next Monday. He commended all the Council Chairmen for their support and the incoming Chairmen for their success in the February council elections.
Also speaking, the FCT Minister of State, Dr Mariya Mahmoud, appreciated Mr. President for his commitment to infrastructure development in the FCT,
She affirmed that the commissioning of the project was a landmark achievement under the Renewed Hope Agenda, noting that it reflects the administration’s resolve to improve connectivity, stimulate economic growth, and enhance the quality of life of residents.
Dr Mahmoud also commended the Minister of the FCT, Barrister Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, for his exemplary leadership and dedication to transforming the nation’s capital by delivering quality infrastructure, while urging residents to continue supporting initiatives that promote development, improve mobility, and strengthen the socio-economic prosperity of the Federal Capital Territory.
In the project overview, Executive Secretary, FCDA, Engr. Richard Yunana Dauda said that the FCT Highway 105 is a key regional route that traverses the FCT, from the north (Abuja-Zuba Road) to the south, connecting the Abuja, Abaji, and Nasarawa Road in the southern part of the FCT. Engr Dauda further said that the current scope from the airport road to Kuje, which is the 1st stage of the full development of the highway, included the construction of about 8.6 kilometers of 2 main carriageways, each of 3 lanes in both directions, making it a 6-lane dual carriageway.
Managing Director, Arab Contractors, Engr Mohamed Eledarous, in an elated but brief speech, said, “We were able to deliver and keep our promise, and are hoping to continue to be part of the development in the FCT”.
