FCT minister Nyesom Wike has promised to deliver the Inner Southern Expressway (Goodluck Jonathan Way) by December.

He said this in Abuja on Tuesday after inspecting the project, alongside the ongoing construction of the service carriageways of the Southern Parkway in Gaduwa District, Abuja.

Mr Wike added that the 10-kilometre road project, awarded in 2014, would span the Southern Parkway to Ring Road II at Galadimawa, with five bridges. According to him, the road is the only project awarded by the previous administration that had not been completed by the President Bola Tinubu’s administration, apart from the Apo-Karshi Road.

The minister said the contractor would complete the remaining six out of the 10-kilometre road and hand it over by the end of December, subject to availability of funds.

He described the road as a “major road” that would change the landscape of the FCT, if completed, adding that talks were ongoing with the Ministry of Finance to make funds available.

“We’ll continue to dialogue with the Minister of Finance to see how to access funds and pay off the contractor to finish the project. The project is key to us and that, of course, will change the entire landscape of the FCT. The Apo-Karshi road awarded in 2010 is almost completed. We were there yesterday,” the FCT minister said

Mr Wike said that completing the projects would fulfil Mr Tinubu’s promise to complete all projects awarded by the previous administrations, particularly between 2010 and 2023.

He noted that it would be a remarkable achievement for this administration to finish all projects awarded by the previous administration, so as not to have abandoned projects everywhere.

The minister also inspected the ongoing construction of two service carriageways of the Southern Parkway, spanning from Arterial Road S20 (Oladipo Diya Way) in Gaduwa District to Ring Road II.

The Southern Parkway serves as one of the most essential transportation corridors within Abuja’s southern development axis, linking multiple dense residential districts across Phases I to IV of the Federal Capital City.

“You know, this road was among the key projects inaugurated to mark Tinubu’s third year in office. We have come to see what they’ve done. The contractors promised to hand over the project by the end of December, and I believe them,” Mr Wike explained.