From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, has assured the FCT Council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) that the long-awaited affordable housing estate for its members in the territory would soon become a reality.
Dangiwa gave the assurance during the NUJ FCT Council Press Week Lecture and Awards Ceremony in Abuja on the theme “Journalism in a Changing World: Press Freedom, Media, Democracy, and Society.”
He reiterated the Ministry’s commitment to the President’s Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, including the Renew Hope Housing Program and the National Urban Renewal Initiatives, aimed at making housing more affordable for all Nigerians. He said that the ministry will be working with relevant authorities and agencies to provide affordable housing units for NUJ FCT journalists.
“To Chairman, NUJ FCT chapter, I want to assure you of our previous engagement and discussions towards having the journalists’ village in the FCT. I assure you that your dream will become a reality as I pledged during our recent meeting engagement. We are going to direct the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) through the Cooperative Housing Development to provide the land to build this estate,’’ he said.
Dangiwa also advocated stronger legal protections for journalists, better funding models for independent media, saying we need to make sure that every journalist feels safe, respected, and supported. “I say this not just as a Minister, but as a citizen who believes in the power of ideas and the sensibility of those who support them,’’ Dangiwa said.
He urged journalists to continue scrutinising the Ministry’s programs and projects, helping Nigerians understand its work and objectives. “We want Nigerians to understand why we are doing it, and no one is better placed to help tell that story than you, the journalists, editors, photographers, producers, publishers, who serve as the eyes and ears of the public,” he said.
The Minister commended Tinubu for championing democratic ideals, including freedom of the press. He noted that under Tinubu’s leadership, Nigeria has witnessed a “genuine commitment to transparency, open dialogue, and respect for the role of the media.” Earlier in her remarks, the Chairperson, NUJ FCT Council, Ms. Grace Ike listed the development of the NUJ FCT Journalists’ Village as one of the priorities to be pursued by the council.
Ike described it as a long-awaited housing initiative, stressing that the executive was working in collaboration with the Ministry of Housing and the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria to make it a reality. “Our goal is simple: provide decent, affordable homes for journalists and their families in the heart of the nation’s capital.”
Other initiatives unveiled by her were modernization of the NUJ FCT Congress Hall, procurement of a union coastal bus, completion of the NUJ Pentagon Hall and the establishment of a journalists’ welfare scheme: “These projects are not luxuries; they are foundational investments in the future of journalism and in the well-being of those who power it. I call on the government, stakeholders, media proprietors, partners, and friends of the union to join us in making these dreams a reality,’’ Ike said.
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