President Bola Tinubu has pulled the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) out of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) to pave the way for the leadership to utilise the territory’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) for the development of the nation’s capital.

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, who announced this at a press conference in Abuja, yesterday, also disclosed that the President has approved the creation of the FCT Civil Service Commission to allow for staff career progression.

The TSA was introduced to mitigate financial leakages, promote probity and prevent misappropriation of government’s revenue, among other reasons.

Explaining how he persuaded Tinubu to remove the FCTA from the TSA, the minister stated that “the Central Bank cannot give FCTA loan, and even the IGR are spent as they come, which you cannot tangibly do anything with.”

He added: “I said to Mr. President that if you want FCT to really carry out its developmental projects and infrastructure, then it must come out of TSA. We (FCT Administration) are not a revenue-generating agency of the Federal Government.

Then what financial leakages are you blocking? The revenue comes in and it will go to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

“We need money to do projects; I can’t go to the Central Bank to ask for money, and I can’t go to the commercial banks; they will ask how do you pay back? So, I said we must be pulled out of TSA; that’s the only way, we can survive it.

“Mr. President graciously agreed with us and approved that we should be pulled out from the TSA. You will see that from next year it will be projects upon projects in the FCT. What you saw in Port Harcourt, Abuja, would be something else. So for us, it is one of the happiest days, and we have to thank Mr. President for his foresight.”

The minister stated that although people would kick against it, the decision was not personal but about the growth of the city and welfare of the civil servants.

He noted that the development was the real essence of the Renewed Hope agenda of the President.

“One of the reasons that I accepted to work with Mr. President is because he has the capacity and political will to do those things that people are afraid of doing. The problem of this country is leadership; so many people don’t want to take actions, as they believe that some people will be angry. There is no action you take that everybody will be happy with. What is important is that you are guided by law and your conscience,” he added.