Information Minister Inspects Idle Govt Press as FG Plans Revival
The Federal Government has signalled plans to revive the long-abandoned Government Printer facility in Abuja following an inspection by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris,
who described the years of neglect as a monumental waste of public resources.
The minister, who toured the facility on Thursday, expressed shock at the state of the multi-billion-naira project, noting that its abandonment runs contrary to the Tinubu administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritises accountability, efficiency and prudent management of national assets.
“It is heart-wrenching to see this level of waste in the heart of Abuja,” Idris said during the inspection. “At a time when government is working hard to conserve resources and look inward, it is unacceptable that such a massive investment has been allowed to deteriorate year after year.”
The Government Printer, established as the official press of the Federal Government, is responsible for printing sensitive national documents, including the Federal Government Gazette and other critical publications of the Ministry of Information and National Orientation. Its prolonged inactivity, the minister noted, has forced the government to outsource jobs that should ordinarily be handled internally.
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According to Idris, the facility was initiated in 2001 during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and is about 70 per cent completed. He revealed that several high-grade printing machines supplied as far back as 2007—imported from Germany and India—remain unopened in their original crates more than a decade later, with some now rendered obsolete by years of neglect.
The inspection also uncovered other idle infrastructure, including a 2000 KVA generator installed in 2011 that has never been used, further underscoring what the minister described as entrenched inefficiencies and underutilisation of public assets.
Accompanied by the Permanent Secretary, the Acting Director in charge of the facility and other senior ministry officials, Idris said the visit was aimed at enabling leadership to assess the situation firsthand and make informed decisions.
“We have come to see things for ourselves. We will return to make concrete recommendations to Mr President and the Federal Executive Council on the best way to revitalise this facility and put it to use for the benefit of Nigerians,” he said.
The minister assured that the Federal Government would no longer tolerate the continued deterioration of national assets, stressing that decisive steps would be taken to recover value from existing investments and prevent further waste.
He reaffirmed the commitment of the Ministry of Information and National Orientation to transparency and responsible governance, in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive that every naira spent must deliver value to Nigerians.
The inspection was disclosed in a statement signed by Rabiu Ibrahim, Special Assistant (Media) to the Minister of Information and National Orientation, on Thursday.
