By PHILIP YATAI

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, says the Abuja Light Rail is ready for commercial operations.

Wike, who stated this after he inspected the project, in Abuja on Monday, added that 15 million dollars, translating to more than N10 billion was expended on the rehabilitation project.

He assured FCT residents that the light rail, also known as the Abuja Metro Line, would be inaugurated by President Bola Tinubu for commercial operations on May 27.

“Thank God Almighty that we are good to go. We are ready and you can see the facilities have been installed.

“We are happy; very, very happy, and we thank God the promise President Tinubu made has been kept.

He said that Tinubu had promised to deliver the metro line to Nigerians within one year in office, adding that as a foot soldier, he has no excuse but to ensure that the promise became a reality.

He said that the operationalisation of the metro line was a testimony of the reality of Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope” agenda.

The minister said that the project was delivered because of the overwhelming support of President Tinubu.

“We are doing well because Mr President has given us every necessary support. Assuming we are not getting the support from him, this would not have been a reality today,” he said.

He, however, Identified facilities that were omitted during the design of the project, particular air conditioning in the passengers waiting room and elevator.

He said: “We are happy with the project. It is just that we identify one or two things that were omitted during the design.

“But we believe that during the full operations of the train, some of the things will be taken into consideration.

“Particularly, I believe that as a standard metro line, where the passengers will be waiting before boarding the trains, there should be air conditioners.

“I also thought that some of the stations should have had an elevator for those who are very old and those who may not have the strength to walk or climb the staircase.

“Apart from that, I think we are happy with the work that has been done and we believe Nigerians will be happy, particularly the residents of FCT.”

He pointed out that the absence of the air conditioning and the elevator would not prevent the full operation of the metro line but make the passengers more comfortable.

The minister also said that access roads have also been constructed to link communities to the train stations.

According to him, without the access roads to the train station, there will be no need for the metro line, otherwise, how will the people from the various communities access the stations?

NAN reports that the project was originally designed to find concrete solution to transportation challenges – heavy traffic and hold-upin the FCT and its environs. (NAN)