An expatriate has been apprehended for allegedly destroying street lights in Abuja, according to the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
The Coordinator of the Abuja Metropolitan Management Agency (AMMC), Felix Obuah, announced the arrest in Abuja on Wednesday after inspecting damaged street lights along the Kubwa expressway and other locations.
Obuah did not reveal the foreigner’s identity but described him as “a prominent foreign contractor engaged in business with the FCTA”.
He noted that scavengers and miscreants had been previously blamed for street light vandalism in Abuja.
“Today, we discovered that high-level contractors are involved in sabotaging the efforts of the FCT minister and AMMC to ensure street lights are working in the capital city,” Obuah said.
“We have arrested a very prominent contractor, an expatriate who was involved in vandalising streetlights, probably to enable them to get the streetlight contract.
“As I speak to you, one of the expatriates is in detention for vandalising our street light poles.”
Obuah promised to submit a report to the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, to address those involved in vandalism and the ones buying the stolen materials.
“I went to Kubwa Road, Jabi, and Shehu Yar’Adua Way, among other streets, and discovered that most of the street lights, particularly in the Kubwa area, have been vandalised,” he said.
“I am saddened by the level of vandalism that has happened in some of these lots.
“We can be fixing street lights while some miscreants and expatriates are busy vandalising, sabotaging the good efforts of this government.”
Obuah added that Wike had previously instructed AMMC to ensure that all street lights in Abuja were working.
He said the council engaged contractors to repair, maintain, and protect the street lights against vandals.
“But when we visited some of the streets, we discovered that most of the contractors are not living up to expectations. There is no security,” he said.
“After they finish installation in the night, they leave, and vandals take over the space and damage the installations, removing mostly the cables.”
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